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05 July 2008 14:02 BST
Ahmadinejad says 'US exit' is precursor to Iraq peace
Monday, 03 Mar 2008 14:01
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calls on foreign troops to leave Iraq, allowing a period of "peace and brotherhood" to begin. Image licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License
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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq will be a precursor to "peace and brotherhood" in the region.
Speaking at the close of an unprecedented two-day trip to Iraq, the
Iran
ian president said "peace and prosperity" would follow the exit of international forces, although he did not explicitly mention the US or Britain.
"Without the presence of the foreign troops the region will live in peace and brotherhood," Mr Ahmadinejad told reporters in Baghdad.
"We believe the forces that came from overseas and travelled thousands of kilometres to reach here must leave the region, and must hand over responsibility to the people of the region."
Mr Ahmadinejad's official visit to Iraq, the first by any president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, has been welcomed by the country's Shia Muslim majority but viewed with deep suspicion by the sidelined Sunni Muslim elite and Washington.
The two-day trip has highlighted the improved relations between the two neighbours, who were at war for most of the 1980s; underlined by the signing of seven trade, industry and transportation agreements.
The Iranian president said the agreements represented a "great step" to a better state of affairs between Tehran and Baghdad.
Mr Ahmadinejad, who also called on a coordinated counterterrorism strategy from Iran, Iraq and Turkey, is the first regional leader to visit Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion which ousted Saddam Hussein.
He met and stayed at the residential compound of Iraqi president Jalal Talabani during the trip and also held talks with prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.
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