Iran's Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei has told visiting Iraqi PM Nouri al-Maliki that the presence of US and British occupation forces are the biggest obstacle to restoring security in Iraq. The leader also told Maliki in the holy city of Mashhad that the Islamic Republic "fully backs Iraq's popular government".
Ayatollah Sayyed Khamenei said Washington wants to maintain a "puppet government" in Baghdad, calling on US occupation forces to withdraw.
"The occupying forces should leave Iraq and let the Iraqis decide about their own fate," the leader said.
"The occupiers claim that if they exit now, Iraq will be destroyed. Whereas if the occupiers leave, all the Iraqi officials will move with full force to solve the people's problems," Sayyed Khamenei added.
His eminence said that "occupation forces are responsible for the problems in all aspects of life'' in Iraq, predicting that the "US policy toward Iraq will definitely fail''. Earlier Iranian Vice President Parviz Davoodi said after meeting al-Maliki that "establishment of peace and tranquility in Iraq depends on withdrawal of occupiers and their avoidance of interfering in Iraq''.
"Iran is sparing no efforts to achieve political and security stability in Iraq,'' Davoodi said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said that when Iraqi forces run security instead of the Americans, "one can be hopeful that effective steps will be taken and that one can be hopeful of talks in the future''.
Iran gave full backing to al-Maliki in talks that sparked unease in Washington.
The Iraqi prime minister emphasized the growing strength of bilateral ties during his two-day visit to Iran, describing his talks in Iran as "successful".
Maliki received a warm welcome from Iran's top officials, including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Maliki praised Iran's "positive and constructive'' role in helping improve security in Iraq and that violence will not undermine the ties between Tehran and Baghdad. Such statements, confirming the increasingly warm relations between Iran and Iraq, irked President Bush who warned Prime Minister Maliki over close relations with Tehran.
Bush warned that there would be "a price to pay" if the US caught the Iraqi prime minister playing what he called as a "non-constructive role" with Iran.
Bush, holding a pre-vacation press conference, said he was not surprised at pictures showing cordial meetings between Maliki and top Iranian officials in Tehran. He suggested Maliki had been photographed smiling with his Iranian hosts only as a diplomatic nicety.
"You don't want the picture to be kind of, you know, duking it out," Bush said, holding up his fists like a boxer as he called Iran "a very troubling nation" that must be isolated.
It was the second time this week Bush has had to defend his tough stance against Iran with contradictory words to a key ally in the face of possible differences over Tehran. He warned Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday during a visit to the US presidential retreat at Camp David to be more suspicious of Iran after the Afghan leader had brushed aside US accusations that Tehran was arming the Taliban.
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Iran news 8/7/7by Kumail123,220 views
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