TEHRAN, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said Tuesday that the presence of Iran in Latin America means a serious defeat for Israel's foreign diplomacy, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.

    The Iranian government has always paid due attention to strengthening bonds with Latin American and African countries, the report quoted Mottaki as saying.

    Iran pursues an active policy in strengthening bonds with Lati nAmerican countries despite "Zionists" (Israel) pressures and their psychological war against Iran, Mottaki told IRNA.

    Mottaki hailed the support of some Latin American countries' leader for Iran's "peaceful" nuclear program which "signifies the victory of the Iranian diplomacy against the Zionists."

    Cuba, Brazil, Venezuela and Bolivia are among the states whose leaders have not concealed their support for the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic, according to the report.

    In recent years, Iran has developed strong ties with some major Latin American states, including Brazil and Venezuela, in energy production, economy and industry, especially after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad took office in 2005.