Any act of adventurism by Washington in the Middle East will certainly incur a substantial loss to Americans, Iran's Majlis Speaker notes.

“The United States and Europe are constantly seeking to invent pretexts while the only solution to the Iranian nuclear issue rests on genuine talks with the Islamic Republic,” Ali Larijani said in Tehran on Saturday. He made the comments in a meeting with visiting head of the Iraqi National Congress (INC), Ahmed Chalabi.

He also observed that Iran will not allow its legitimate right to access peaceful nuclear energy be sqandered. In that context the speaker said any measure of White House adventurism in the Mideast will be detrimental to Americans.

Larijani said the establishment of stability and preservation of Iraqi independence and territorial integrity is a primary concern for Tehran.

Commenting on the proposed Iraq-US security treaty, he noted, “Through the status of forces agreement (SOFA), Washington is seeking to have a permanent presence of US forces in Iraq, as a source for creating tension throughout the Mideast.

“The security treaty will be to the detriment of the Iraqi nation, and its supporters will taint their reputation should they follow through with it. Its ratification will only serve to destabilize the region and keep the US in its present quagmire."

The INC's Chalabi retorted that granting immunity to US military personnel from prosecution under Iraqi law is baldly unacceptable. “The vast majority of Iraqi people and authorities oppose the security treaty and regard it as contradictory to Iraq's sovereignty and security.”

Chalabi stated the treaty is counterproductive for Iraq in the long term and what the US is seeking is a binding bilateral agreement for the ongoing presence of its forces in Iraq whose UN mandate expires on December 31.

MP/HAR