U.S.: Hezbollah increases LatAm influence vis-a-vis Iran

Iran has increased its ties with several Latin American countries in recent years; thus unnerving U.S. government officials. In January, for instance, Defense Secretary Robert Gates deemed Iran as a “subversive threat” to the region.

Last November former CIA official John Kiriakou wrote in the Los Angeles Times against the possibility that Iran run “a terrorist base of operations in the United States’ backyard.” To this, fellow blog contributor Miguel had the following response:

(…) With respect to Latin America, where US policy has rarely been multi-dimensional, it will be easy for the new Obama administration to bite into this wedge issue for fear of looking soft. Doing so, though, will only hamper its ability to engage difficult, independent-minded leaders such as Chavez, Morales, or even Lugo. And to be clear, I think engagement -- yes, talking -- is good. Clearly, Iran is a country to be taken seriously, and clearly, it's a different story if evidence surfaces that these LAC governments are harboring terrorists (and not just visa-free Iranians). Thus, I hope that the new administration doesn't just take the bait, that they listen to the credible intel reports from current CIA staff, and if possible, can avoid having it's first LAC policy statement being just another Monrovian ultimatum about who should or shouldn't play with whom.

It appears as if the new administration has “taken the bait”:

The commander of U.S. forces in Latin America (Admiral James Stavridis) says the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah is involved in drug trafficking in Colombia. The admiral is worried about increased Iranian and Hezbollah activities throughout the region…

"We have seen in Colombia a direct connection between Hezbollah activity and the narco-trafficking activity," he said.

Stavridis also warned that Hezbollah activities have been concentrated around the shared border area between Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina.

Do you agree with Stavridis? Is he accurate in characterizing the Iranian “threat” to the Americas or is he grossly exaggerating? Are you surprised that U.S. officials are making the same claims under both the current and previous White House?

Image- BBC News (Hezbollah militants hold a 2008 rally in Beirut)
Online Sources- The Latin Americanist, Voice of America, Los Angeles Times, Reuters