Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi arrived in Nicaragua on Tuesday, official media said, where he will meet with his ally President Daniel Ortega to sign “important cooperation agreements.”
Since Ortega’s return to power in 2007, Nicaragua has strengthened its ties with Iran and in February both countries signed a memorandum of collaboration on energy issues, the details of which have not been disclosed.
The Nicaraguan vice president and government spokesperson, Rosario Murillo, said earlier that Ortega and Raisi will meet on Tuesday and that on Wednesday the Iranian president will visit the Parliament of the Central American country, dominated by the ruling party.
Raisi, who arrived in Venezuela on Monday for the first stop on his tour of the region that also includes Cuba, signed in Caracas a series of agreementss with his colleague Nicolás Maduro to increase commercial exchange.
Nicaragua, along with Venezuela and Cuba, have reached out to Iran, antagonizing the United States, which, along with European officials, has been seeking ways to rein in Tehran’s nuclear program since last year’s breakdown of indirect talks with Washington on reviving the accord. 2015 nuclear war between Iran and the major powers.
Nicaragua, one of the Islamic country’s main allies in Latin America, has backed Iran’s nuclear program.
