Iran's supreme leader told visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on Monday the main problem facing Iraq was the presence of American and other foreign forces there, Iranian state radio reported. "The presence of occupiers in Iraq, particularly the U.S. armed forces ... is the main obstacle to unity in Iraq," Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was quoted as saying during a meeting with Maliki in Tehran.
"The most important problem of Iraq is the presence of foreign forces in that country," Khamenei said, according to Reuters.
Khamenei told the Iraqi prime minister on Monday that the "Americans' dreams for Iraq will not be materialised," Iranian state radio said. Khamenei pledged Iranian support for its neighbour: "Helping Iraq ... is our religious duty," he told Maliki.
