The recent visit of an Iranian delegation to Venezuela marks a new chapter in the already robust strategic alliance between both countries, raising questions about the implications for regional and global stability. According to the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry, the March 11 meeting aimed at reviewing bilateral cooperation.
Both countries, under autocratic regimes and facing international sanctions for human rights violations, are seeking to counter their isolation from global markets through increased engagement, a report by London-based intelligence firm Grey Dynamics, said.
Both the Venezuelan and Iranian regimes have been strengthening their relations with China and Russia, Grey Dynamics added. In the coming months, Caracas and Tehran are expected to increase their relations in politics, energy, and defense.
For Jorge Serrano, a security expert and member of the advisory team of Peru’s Congressional Intelligence Commission, this growing collaboration is a clear indication that Tehran uses the South American nation as a base and gateway for hostile activities in the region, he told Diálogo on March 26.
Capabilities
A video, published by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), highlights the Islamic Republic’s efforts to increase its influence in Venezuela due to the country’s strategic location and the financial opportunities linked to narcotrafficking.
The video details how the Iranian regime channels weaponry to Venezuela using air and sea routes, with systems capable of traveling thousands of kilometers. An outstanding case is the presence of the Iranian-made Mohajer-6 drone that can carry up to four air-to-surface missiles, which the regime recently exhibited in a military parade in Caracas.
“This strategy is part of a broader alliance to facilitate Iran’s continued infiltration in Latin America, allowing it to effectively carry out intelligence operations,” Serrano said.
Iranian ships with missiles have also been identified off the northwest coast of Venezuela. Although their navigational range is limited, they carry long-range missiles, the IDF said.
Joseph Humire, director of the think tank Center for a Secure Free Society, compared Venezuela’s strategic importance to Iran to the role Syria played in the Levant, facilitating the arming and financing of Hezbollah, British Daily Mail reported March 10.
“The Russia-Ukraine conflict has further complicated the picture, strengthening the alliance between Bolivia, China, Cuba, Iran, Nicaragua, Russia, and Venezuela to build joint capabilities and interoperability,” Serrano said. “This gives Iran, backed by the Kremlin, greater freedom of action in the region.”
Narco cooperation
The region also presents a complex interaction between Mexican drug cartels and the three main coca producing countries: Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia. “In Peru we have seen a jump in coca leaf production for cocaine processing, from 240 to almost 800 tons,” Serrano said.
“This increase coincides with the freer and more aggressive action of the Iranian regime in the region which, known for aiding the illegal trade of toxic drugs through terrorist links, finds the ideal environment to deepen its involvement with the narcotrafficking cartels,” he added.
The Triple Frontier, between Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, already known for its dense drug smuggling and trafficking activity, has seen Hezbollah strengthen its presence, German broadcaster DW reported. The area has become a hub for money laundering and recruitment for the organization, evidencing the fusion between crime and terrorism.
The growth of drug trafficking and terrorism often leads to more corruption and democratic erosion, Serrano said. “For Iran, fomenting chaos and crime in Latin America serves its interests in undermining democracies, facilitating subversive operations, and training organized crime organizations.”
He also highlighted Iran’s interest in Venezuela’s uranium reserves, a crucial element for its nuclear program. This interest is not limited to Venezuelan territory. Bolivia and Peru are also key for their strategic resources, highlighting the geopolitical importance of these countries for Tehran.
According to Humire, China uses Iran as an intermediary to carry out many of its actions in the Western Hemisphere, thus safeguarding its diplomatic relations with the United States and other countries, the Daily Mail reported. He further noted that Iran is willing to cooperate in this, because it has no political capital to risk.
Reelection
In the area of economic cooperation between Venezuela and Iran, “Iranian economic support has become a pillar to balance the Venezuelan budget, allowing the dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro to subsidize his projects, with a view to ensuring his reelection,” Serrano said.
According to Serrano, once the presidential elections are over, Maduro will use this economic backing to continue and possibly intensify his financial support to Cuba, as well as to sponsor political campaigns in the region and execute intelligence operations.
For all these reasons, “leaders should urge their intelligence services to conduct updated assessments on complex and multidimensional threats, in addition to fostering a regional alliance, backed by powers such as the United States and the European Union, to address these threats and protect the population,” Serrano concluded.