BICOM

The Israeli Foreign Ministry is considering cancelling an upcoming visit of Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman, following a report suggesting Argentina told Iran it would ‘forget’ the 1992 and 1994 bombings of an Israeli embassy and a Jewish community centre in exchange for improved trade ties.

The Argentine weekly Perfil broke the story on Saturday, which accused Timerman of personal involvement in the talks with Iranian officials.  Israeli foreign ministry officials said that they would consider cancelling Timerman’s visit planned for next week if the story is revealed to be true. Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Yigal Palmor said that Israel was awaiting clarification from the Argentinean Foreign Ministry. Palmor added that if the story is verified by the Argentine authorities then it “would be a manifestation of cynicism and insult to the memory of the victims. But, we are still waiting for the Argentine Foreign Ministry to issue an official reaction.”

The story revealed a classified document which showed Argentina’s willingness to freeze the investigation into the 1992 and 1994 terrorist attacks in exchange for renewing trade relations between Buenos Aires and Tehran. The two attacks killed 114 people and wounded hundreds and are still under investigation.