Argentina angers Bolivia, Chile over 'harboring Iranian cells' allegations

News Desk - The Cradle 

Buenos Aires has become increasingly close to the US and Israel since the arrival of far-right President Javier Milei last December

The governments of Bolivia and Chile on 17 April clapped back against allegations by Argentinian Interior Minister Patricia Bullrich, in which she claimed that cells from Hezbollah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force are active in the neighboring countries.

“Hezbollah has cells in Chile; in Iquique, it has cells that were discovered last year, but two escaped to Sao Paulo,” Bullrich told Argentinian news outlet La Nación this week, adding that the Lebanese resistance has cells in the triple border with Paraguay and Brazil.

She later said that Buenos Aires “shares US concerns” over the border region shared with Bolivia.

“There, we have the highest security alert because of a memorandum signed by Bolivia and Iran [last year]. There are Iranian members of the Quds Force … We are analyzing whether there are people who do not speak Spanish and have Bolivian passports," Bullrich said.

Buenos Aires blames Hezbollah and Iran for the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community center that left 85 dead. Both Tehran and Hezbollah deny the accusation.

The Argentinian security chief also stressed that the far-right government of President Javier Milei “stands with Israel, with the US, with Europe and with the western world out of conviction.”

Bullrich's claims drew the ire of La Paz and Santiago, as the two countries issued statements denying the allegations and announced they would summon their respective Argentinian envoys to issue a note of protest.

In a statement issued via social media, the Bolivian Ministry of Foreign Affairs described Bullrich's claims as “wrong and reckless.” “We deny and emphatically reject that Bolivia protects on its borders people who spread terror, insecurity and anxiety. These accusations lack evidence or documentation and are made without any basis,” the Bolivian government stressed.
Chilean President Gabriel Boric also took aim at Bullrich during a speech on Wednesday, calling on the Argentinian official to “hand over [any evidence] and collaborate” and urged her "not make allegations at random without [evidence] to prove absolutely anything.”

The inflammatory claims by the top Argentinian official come days after US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) commander Laura Richardson visited the South American nation.

Richardson met with Milei in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in Argentina, where Buenos Aires is building an “Integrated Naval Base” that will also count on the participation of SOUTHCOM.

“You need to build strategic alliances with countries that share your worldview,” the Argentinian president said during a joint press conference. He also lashed out at previous Argentinian governments for “[failing] to defend us from drug traffickers and Islamic terrorism.”

The far-right leader also emphasized Argentina has a “special affinity” with the US because the two nations are “part of the western tradition.”

“We should be proud of this heritage, as it has provided humanity with great progress,” he said.

In 2022, Richardson told the Aspen Security Forum that Washington was looking to expand its grip on South America for control of its natural resources, chief among them lithium.

The renewed push by the US to control South America's natural riches came after Russia, China, and Iran started making significant inroads into the region.

Last year, Bolivia signed a landmark defense agreement with Tehran, which would reportedly provide the Andean nation with drones to combat drug trafficking on its borders, in a deal that set off alarms in neighboring Argentina.

The Islamic Republic inked a defense treaty with Nicaragua last year and saw a marked improvement in its ties with Brazil, after the country allowed two Iranian warships to dock in its ports.