Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Iraqi official rejects reports on Iran`s intervention in Iraq

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Kuwait City, May 2, IRNA -- an Iraqi official on Saturday rejected 
reports that Iran was interfering in Iraq`s internal affairs saying 
the anti-Iran allegations were politically motivated. 
Director General of the Iraqi Foreign Ministry Department for 
Iran and Turkey Affairs Taha Al-Abbasi said Iran was in no means 
meddling in Iraq`s internal affairs. 
Speaking to the Kuwait-based Al-Alam daily, Al-Abbasi said Iran 
was playing no role in the intensification of the crisis in Iraq and 
the Iraqi Foreign Ministry is fully conscious of the issue. 
He touched on the outcome of his recent visit to Iran and said 
during his Tehran visit he discussed with the Iranian authorities on 
a range of issues such as exchange of prisoners of war, those missing 
in action, and the neutralization of the lands where mines had been 
planted during the 1980-1988 war. 
He said the sides agreed on the termination of the related dossier
as soon as possible. 
On the border control by Iran, he said Iran and Iraq have some 
1200 kilometers of joint borders and the Iranian law enforcement 
forces try to fully control these borders to prevent any illegal entry
or exit. 
On April 16, Iran took a move to help solve the crisis in 
neighboring Iraq as it supported the legitimate demand of the Iraqi 
people for occupiers to quickly withdraw their troops from Iraq. 
Iran stressed that the best thing the occupying forces can do is 
to transfer power to the Iraqi people as soon as possible. 
Iran`s Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi said Iran cannot be 
indifferent toward Iraq`s developments as well as the instability and 
the killings of the Iraqi people. 
His comments came as Tehran dispatched a diplomatic delegation to 
Baghdad to find solutions to the critical situation in Iraq. 
The five-member delegation was headed by Foreign Ministry Director
General for Persian Gulf Affairs Hossein Sadeqi and it held talks with
senior Iraqi religious authorities, members of the Governing Council 
and political leaders. 
Only hours after the delegation arrived in Baghdad, unknown 
assailants shot dead Khalil Na`imi, the first secretary of the Iranian
Embassy in Iraq, outside the embassy compounds. 
HB/214 
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