http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/06/us-venezuela-chavez-iran-idUSBRE9250CQ20130306http://www.france24.com/en/20130306-oliver-stone-sean-penn-hail-hero-chavez(Reuters) - Iran declared a day of national mourning on Wednesday after the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who shared the Islamic Republic's loathing for U.S. "imperialism".
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who had forged a public friendship with Chavez characterized by lavish mutual praise, hugs and light-hearted moments, may attend Chavez's funeral on Friday, state news agency IRNA reported.
The two men had sought closer ties between their geographically distant countries, although action on joint social and military projects announced in recent years has often lagged behind the rhetoric.
"Hugo Chavez is a name known to all nations. His name is a reminder of cleanliness and kindness, bravery ... dedication and tireless efforts to serve the people, especially the poor and those scarred by colonialism and imperialism," Ahmadinejad said.
"I offer my condolences to all nations, the great nation of Venezuela and his respected family over this tragic event," he said in statement published on his official website.
Chavez died on Tuesday after a two-year battle with cancer. He suffered multiple complications after his latest operation in December and had not made a public appearance since.
The news of Chavez's death dominated many Iranian news websites, which carried obituaries and photo galleries of him.
The United States had looked askance at Venezuela's warm relationship with Iran, fearing that Caracas could give Tehran an economic lifeline as it struggles to stave off pressure from sanctions over its nuclear activities.
Iran denies seeking an atomic weapons capability and says it has the right to develop its own nuclear fuel cycle under its membership of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Chavez, at a news conference with Ahmadinejad in Caracas in January 2012, mocked U.S. suspicions about Iran's nuclear work, saying: "That hill will open up and a big atomic bomb will come out."
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Oliver Stone, Sean Penn hail 'hero' Chavez
President Hugo Chavez (L) and US filmmaker Oliver Stone arrive at the Teresa Carreno Theatre for the premiere of the documentary "South of the Border" in Caracas on May 28, 2010. Stone hailed the late Venezuelan leader as a "great hero" on Tuesday, saying he will "live forever in history."
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez (R) poses with US actor Sean Penn after a meeting in Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas on March 5, 2011. Penn paid tribute to Chavez saying the world's poor had lost a "champion" and America had also lost "a friend it never knew it had."
AFP - US filmmaker and long-time Hugo Chavez supporter Oliver Stone hailed the late Venezuelan leader as a "great hero" on Tuesday, saying he will "live forever in history."
Actor and activist Sean Penn, another Hollywood friend to Chavez, also paid tribute saying the world's poor had lost a "champion" and America had also lost "a friend it never knew it had."
"JFK" and "Natural Born Killers" director Stone said: "I mourn a great hero to the majority of his people and those who struggle throughout the world for a place.
"Hated by the entrenched classes, Hugo Chavez will live forever in history," he added in a statement released by his publicist, adding: "My friend, rest finally in a peace long earned."
Stone has regularly praised Chavez, whom he interviewed for a 2009 documentary "South of the Border," exploring the outspoken Venezuelan leader's role in bottom-up change sweeping South America.
Penn, in a statement reacting to Chavez's death aged 58, added: "Venezuela and its revolution will endure under the proven leadership of Vice President (Nicolas) Maduro.
"Today the people of the United States lost a friend it never knew it had. And poor people around the world lost a champion. I lost a friend I was blessed to have.
"My thoughts are with the family of President Chavez and the people of Venezuela," he added
The Oscar-winning actor developed a friendship Chavez, visiting him in Venezuela on multiple occasions, and also interviewing Cuban revolutionary icon Fidel Castro. Chavez has described the actor as a "friend of just causes."
Stone and Penn were speaking after Chavez lost his battle with cancer, his death silencing the leading voice of the Latin American left and plunging his oil-rich nation into an uncertain future.
Topic: Iran, Sean Penn, Oliver Stone are devastated by 'Hero' Chavez death (Read 337 times)