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Copyright 2004 Natlonwl~e News pty Limited
PNG Post-Courier
April 19,2004 Monday
SECTION: FLARE UP IN IRAQi Pg. 15
LENGTH: 237 words
HEADLINE: US policies to blame
BODY: ~
TEHRAN: Iran yesterday said Americas iron-fisted policies and the lack of security undermined Iranian efforts to bring calm to Iraq.
And that It would no longer co-operate with Washington In such efforts.
Iran had sent a diplomatic delegation to Iraq In an effort to Improve security but Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefl
said the team did not make the contacts It had hoped, and blamed the Americans.
The latest setback to Iranian efforts came after an Iranian diplomat was killed in Baghdad on Thursday, causing Iran to distance
Itself from mediation efforts to end a standoff between Iraqi mllitlas,loyal to anti-US cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and US forces.
From the very beginning of the crisis, Iran tried to help ease tension but Washington s employment of an Iron-fist policy further
complicated the situation" Mr Asefi said.,
He was referring to the Increasing use of force by the US military, which laid siege to FaliuJah last week after the killing and
mutilation of four US civilians.
Mr Asefl also said America s policies caused the failure of the mission of an Iranian diplomatic delegation to Iraq last week.
He said Hossein Sadeghi, a top Iranian Foreign Ministry official, failed to meet with al-Sadr and Grand Ayatollah All al-Husselnl ai-
,Slstanl, Iraq s most powerful Shi Ite cleric.
'
We couldn t meet Sadr or Ayatollah Sistani becaus~ of lack of security, Mr Asefi said.
LOAD-DATE: April 19, 2004