Economic Relationship:

Chile and Iran enjoy good trade relations, and Chile has been an important contributor to Iran’s recent increase in trade relations with Latin America.

In late May 2009, Israeli news website Ynet obtained a detailed dossier drafted by the Israeli Foreign Ministry on Iran’s activities in South America. The report, which is based on information gathered by Israeli and foreign military and diplomatic sources around the world, claimed that Iran had begun building friendships in Latin America as early as 1982. The Foreign Ministry report claimed that particularly “since Ahmadinejad’s rise to power, Tehran has been promoting an aggressive policy aimed at bolstering its ties with Latin American countries with the declared goal of ‘bringing America to its knees.’” The Ministry also detailed the economic ties between Tehran and South America. According to the report, Chile purchases Iranian oil, although a specific statistic was not provided.

In October 2009, Chilean oil company Enap announced its plans to divest it stake in Iran’s Mehr block and exit the country. Enap had a 33% stake in an exploration contract for the Mehr block, which is located in the southwestern Khuzestan province near Iraq and Kuwait.

In late February 2010, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton began a tour of Latin American that included the countries Chile, Brazil, Uruguay, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. A week before her departure Clinton announced, “I’m on my way to Latin America next week. And Iran is at the top of my agenda.”

Diplomatic/Military Relationship:

After a devastating earthquake hit Chile on February 27, 2010, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she still planned to visit Santiago, but the agenda of her visit would change in the wake of the natural disaster.

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“Iran Triples Latin American Trade To US$2.9 Billion,” Santiago Times, December 7, 2009, (February 24, 2009) “Israel: Ties to South America Aiding Iran’s Nuclear Program,” ynet, May 25, 2009. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3721335,00.html “Israel: Ties to South America Aiding Iran’s Nuclear Program,” ynet, May 25, 2009. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3721335,00.html “Israel: Ties to South America Aiding Iran’s Nuclear Program,” ynet, May 25, 2009. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3721335,00.html “Israel: Ties to South America Aiding Iran’s Nuclear Program,” ynet, May 25, 2009. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3721335,00.html “Chile’s Enap to Divest Stake in Iran Block,” encyclopedia.com, October 30, 2009. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-210928942.html “Chile’s Enap to Divest Stake in Iran Block,” encyclopedia.com, October 30, 2009. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-210928942.html “Clinton: “Iran is at the Top of my Agenda,” Foreign Policy The Cable, February 24, 2010. “Hillary Clinton Begins Latin American Tour,” Kim Ghattas, BBC, March 1, 2010.