Argentina chief steers clear of Iranian leader

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — As Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visits Latin America this weekend to strengthen economic and political ties with the region, Argentina's Nestor Kirchner will not be in the line of presidents turning out to greet him.

Kirchner's government has reinvigorated attempts to prosecute Iranian figures for their alleged role in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center here, recently issuing arrest warrants for nine former Iranian officials. Among those sought is former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, accused of ordering the attack that killed 85 people and injured more than 200.

The pursuit of Iran has been frustrated over the years by blatant corruption in the Argentine judicial system and accusations of cover-ups. The latest efforts to resolve the case come as much of the region is expanding relations with Iran and several of Argentina's regional allies are pledging support for Ahmadinejad's government.

The Iranian leader plans to meet this week with Venezuela's Hugo Chávez, Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega, Ecuador's Rafael Correa, Bolivia's Evo Morales and possibly others. The leaders are expected to discuss broadening bilateral agreements, such as the technology-sharing deals that Chávez signed with Iran last year.

Chávez said Saturday that Venezuela and Iran will back cuts in OPEC output to oversupplied world markets in order to support prices.

"Clearly the actors driving all of this are Chávez and Ahmadinejad," said Michael Shifter, an analyst with the Inter-American Dialogue, a policy forum in Washington, D.C. "Both of them see themselves as global players, and so it's nice for them to build these sorts of alliances and coalitions, which people like Correa and Morales are inclined to join in."

Although Argentina maintains friendly relations with each of those leaders, Kirchner's domestic agenda is driving him in a different direction. For example, he canceled plans to attend Correa's inauguration ceremony this week after Ahmadinejad announced he would attend.

The continuing U.S. conflict with Iran complicates matters further: Some critics contend that Kirchner's government has been manipulated by a regionally unpopular U.S. government that wants to use the Argentine court rulings to stir international outrage against Ahmadinejad.

One of Kirchner's most loyal and high-profile domestic allies — former street activist Luis D'Elia — was forced to resign from his government post after he recently suggested that U.S. and Israeli pressure was fueling Argentina's pursuit of Iran.

But for many people in Argentina, the recent judicial action has been a bright spot in a case that has been marred for years by botched attempts to bring the bombers to justice.

"Now at least there is hope, a small light that can be seen in the darkness," said Luis Sergio Grynwald, president of the Argentine Jewish Mutual Aid Association, the community organization targeted in the attack. "That light hasn't been reached yet, and we'd like it to be bigger, but it's still a light."

Information from Reuters is included in this report.