Sunday, April 14, 2013

Ahmadinejad Leaves for Africa


Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today embarked on a tour of the African states of Benin, Ghana and Niger. Oil export agreements appear to be on top of Ahmadinejad’s agenda.  

“During our trip to Benin, Niger and Ghana, we will try to not only consolidate ties, but also take long strides in boosting comprehensive ties,” Ahmadinejad said before leaving Tehran. “Different memorandums of understanding in the fields of energy, commerce, culture, tourism and health will be signed.” (IRNA, 14 April)

“Education, agriculture and, above all, energy” would be on the agenda, said Benin Foreign Minister Nassirou Arifari Bako. (AFP, 14 April)

In Niger, Ahmadinejad is also expected to discuss possibilities of importing uranium from that country, world’s fourth largest producer of uranium.

The Iranian president will be back in Tehran in time to participate in a political rally at Azadi Stadium. Iran will hold its presidential election on 14 June to elect a successor to Ahmadinejad. The Azadi Stadium rally was postponed to Thursday to accommodate Ahmadinajad’s African visits.

Photo credit: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad leaving Tehran’s Mehrabad airport for a visit to 3 West African countries. 14 April 2013 (IRNA).

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Our boy Mahmoud is getting frequent flyer miles to the very end of his term.