PHILO PHOTO: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro speaks at a youth event of Venezuela’s United Socialist Party in Caracas, Venezuela June 22, 2020. Miraflores Palace / Handout via REUTERS
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Saturday it would be a “good idea” to buy missiles from Iran, a day after Colombia said Venezuela was considering such a plan amid growing ties between Caracas and Tehran.
Iran supplied gasoline to Venezuela in May to reduce chronic shortages, triggering alarm bells in Washington as the two countries expand trade relations amid efforts to undermine aggressive U.S. sanctions programs.
“It did not occur to me, it did not happen to us,” Maduro said during a televised broadcast with cabinet members, instructing Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino to follow up and jokingly tell his cabinet to keep the plan secret.
“Padrino, what a great idea, to talk to Iran to see what short, medium and long range missiles they have, and if possible, see the great relations we have with Iran.”
Colombian President Ivan Duque said on Thursday that Maduro was looking to buy Iranian missiles and hand over weapons made in Russia and Belarus to Colombian armed groups, blaming intelligence reports.
Purchases of weapons appear relatively unlikely for Maduro, whose government is struggling to buy basic food and medicine or supply fuel to the population due to sanctions, such as chronic dysfunction of the country’s refineries.
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