 | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | | | | Politics: W. House warns Iran to stay out of Iraq">Archive of stories pre April 2007 | | | | | | | 
Archive of stories pre April 2007 | News submitted by: MIB
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush administration has warned the Iranian government to stay out of Iraq and not interfere with the country in its "road to democracy," the White House said Wednesday.
While not explicitly confirming reports that Iranian agents were making their way into Iraq, White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said, "We have concerns about this matter."
Fleischer said the Iranian efforts would likely "not have much chance of success" due to cultural differences. But he warned Iran to stay out of Iraqi affairs nevertheless.
"We have made clear to Iran that we would oppose any outside organizations' interference in Iraq and interfering with the road to democracy," he said. "Infiltration of agents to destabilize the Shiite population clearly fall into that category."
A Pentagon official Wednesday told CNN that intelligence reports received in the past few days indicate an unknown number of Iranian-backed agents have moved into southern Iraq to promote Shiite and Iranian interests with the Shia community there.
The reports indicated the Iranians were operating around Najaf, Karbala and Basra. Some of them may be members of the Badr Brigade, a Shiite militia group based in Iran, this official said.
Fleischer would not say at what level or through what means the administration's message was communicated to Iran. The United States and Iran do not have diplomatic relations.
Despite concerns about Iranian attempts to influence Iraq, the White House is attempting to play down some calls among Iraq's Shiites for a fundamentalist, Islamic-led government, chalking it up to the "exuberance" of liberation.
Fleischer said the Shiites' "ability to celebrate a holiday they were previously prohibited from celebrating was greeted by the president with joy" because they can practice their religion.
On Wednesday, thousands of Shia Muslims ended 40 days of mourning with a religious gathering at a holy shrine in Karbala for the first time in decades.
Fleischer said the White House would continue to work toward establishing a democratic and tolerant Iraqi government that is composed of "all components of the Iraqi community, not one community versus another, not one community over another."
Fleischer pointed to Turkey as a model for a country that is "consistent with Islamic governance" while still a democracy.
On the question of U.N. sanctions, Fleischer said the administration appreciates that France recognizes the end of Saddam Hussein's regime, but its proposal to suspend civil sanctions did not go far enough.
"The U.S. position is that economic sanctions are no longer necessary," Fleischer said. "The sanctions should be lifted and not merely suspended."
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/04/23/sprj.nitop.wh.iran.iraq/index.html
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