Iran Crackdown Begins To Damage US-Iran Relations

BAGHDAD — The United States has no imminent plans to resume talks with Iran about Iraq, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq said Monday, taking a hard line against Tehran amid tension over its postelection turmoil.

Ambassador Christopher Hill, who assumed his post in April, told The Associated Press that Iran is still trying to exert a "malevolent influence" over its neighboring country but said he was hopeful Iraqis aren't responding.

The U.S. military accuses Iran of backing Shiite militias in Iraq with training and weapons and says it remains a major threat to Iraq's stability as American combat troops pull back from cities in a first step toward a full withdrawal by the end of 2011.

Tehran denies allegations that it is supporting violence in Iraq.

Overall, Hill said Iraq was on the right track and expressed confidence that Iraqi forces were capable of assuming security in urban areas as the U.S. mission shifts from a combat role.

"The Iraqi forces have gained an incredible number of capabilities over the years and so we think they're ready," he said during an interview in the new U.S. Embassy in the protected Green Zone.

He called on the Iraqi government to step up efforts to unite the country's divided sectarian and ethnic communities, saying a lack of political progress was feeding the violence that continues on a daily basis in Iraq.

"These reconciliation issues need to be pursued and frankly they have to pick up the pace," he said. "A lot of the security problems in the past years have been due to the fact that there has been inadequate dialogue and process among these different communities so we need to see a lot more done."

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He pledged the United States would maintain a "vigorous diplomatic engagement" in Iraq even as the military draws down its forces.

The United States has held groundbreaking diplomatic meetings with the Iranians to discuss Iraq's security but the Iranians suspended those in May 2008 as the Americans were involved in a government crackdown against Shiite militias. The United States broke off diplomatic relations with Iran after its 1979 Islamic revolution and takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.

Tensions also rose between the two countries when Tehran objected to negotiations over the U.S.-Iraqi security pact that set the withdrawal timeline.

Hill said it's too soon to discuss more talks because of the political turmoil in Iran following the June 12 disputed presidential vote that led to a government crackdown on protesters.

"We don't have any plans at this point to be negotiating with the Iranians, and our sense is that the Iranians frankly speaking have other things on their mind now," he said.

Hill also called on Iran to respect Iraq's sovereignty.

"The U.S. has no interest in negotiating with Iran over the future of Iraq. I think an issue pertaining to Iraq's future needs to be handled between the Iraqis and the Iranians," he said. "We support a good relationship with Iran and Iraq but it needs to be a relationship based on mutual respect."

He said he was concerned about military reports showing that illegal arms continue to flow into Iraq from Iran, although he could not say if they had been reduced or increased amid the recent security gains.

"Certainly we've seen examples of this which are not consistent with a good neighbor policy," he said.

"The Iraqi government is also very concerned about this and I think the Iraqi government is taking a very tough minded view of some of these insurgent groups that the Iranians have clearly been supporting over the last year or so," he added.

Hill said during confirmation hearings in March that he would be prepared to restart U.S.-Iraqi talks with Iran if the administration decided it could be helpful.

Obama had said upon coming to office that he wanted to give Iran a way to lessen its international isolation by opening up to the United States after nearly three decades of diplomatic estrangement.

But new relations have been called into question by the dispute over Iran's presidential vote.