The Iraqi prime minister sought to ease Iranian fears over a proposed US-Iraq security deal, saying his government will not allow Iraq to become a launching pad for an attack on Iran.
Iraqi Prime minister Nouri Al-Maliki met yesterday with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in a two-day visit to Tehran that was expected to focus on the security pact, which Washington and Baghdad hope to finish by mid-summer.
Iran fiercely opposes the agreement, saying it will lead to permanent US bases on its doorstep in Iraq, reflecting Tehran’s fears US forces could attack it. The agreement aims to establish a long-term security arrangement between Iraq and the US.
After talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on Saturday evening, al-Maliki said Baghdad would not allow Iraq to become a launching pad for “harming” Iran, the state broadcaster said on its Web site.
Al-Maliki said his government places great value on Iran’s security, the broadcaster said.
State TV said al-Maliki also met Iran’s intelligence minister, Gholam Hossein Mohseini Ejehi, on Saturday night. The report did not elaborate.
Iran’s official IRNA news agency said on Saturday that al-Maliki would also discuss “security issues” during his visit — a reference to US allegations that Iran is arming, funding and training Shiite militiamen. Iran has denied the charges, saying it supports Iraq’s security and stability.
The visit is the second this year by al-Maliki, a Shiite, and three months ago, Ahmadinejad made a landmark visit to Iraq.
Al-Maliki’s Dawa party, along with other Shiite parties in his ruling coalition, have longstanding close ties with Iran.
During former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein’s rule, Iran and Iraq fought an eight-year war that killed about 1 million people.
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