APN | Zoom

11 February 2026

“Iran has endured despite 47 years of sanctions… and U.S. pressure has failed to achieve its goals”.

With these words, APN Agricultural Advisor opened his remarks at a webinar organized by ILPS West Asia and Africa, held online under the title: “Hands Off Venezuela and Iran!”.

The seminar reviewed Iranian policy in confronting what was described as Western interventions since 1979, highlighting how it has managed to reduce illiteracy rates, expand healthcare coverage to include more than 95% of the population, and move toward self-sufficiency in the production of medicines and agricultural goods, despite sanctions spanning more than four decades.

APN Agricultural Advisor noted that Western powers and the Zionist entity rely on “complex strategies” to target countries that reject hegemony, including fomenting internal divisions, supporting opposition groups, and turning peaceful protests into acts of violence – methods that have been observed in multiple protests across the region.

He argued that the aim of these policies has been “to dismantle national security and control national resources”, calling for stronger solidarity among countries of the Global South and the formation of partnerships to confront Western economic and political pressures.

During the same seminar, Activist Jesús Rojas traced a history of U.S. attempts to weaken the Bolivarian Republic in Venezuela through a series of measures, including economic sanctions and pressure policies, affirming the continued tactical resistance of the Venezuelan people against these pressures.

He also expressed solidarity with President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, referring to events at the beginning of this year, when the president and his wife were reportedly detained and later brought to the United States during a large-scale military operation led by U.S. forces in January 2026. They were transferred to New York, where they appeared before the judiciary on charges related to drug trafficking and other crimes – a move that drew widespread criticism as a violation of national sovereignty, according to observers and international analysts.

The participants concluded the seminar by calling for strengthened international solidarity with Venezuela and Iran, and for a focus on building economic and political alliances among countries of the Global South as a means of confronting what they described as Western economic and political strangulation.