Ambassador: Iran meddling in Iraq pact

BAGHDAD - U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker yesterday accused Iran of trying to interfere with a new security pact between Iraq and the United States, and said Americans need to view Iraq with "a sense of strategic patience" because the stakes in the region are so high.

The 37-year veteran diplomat, interviewed at his embassy in Baghdad, is in the middle of tough negotiations with Iraqi officials to define the basis for a continuing American military presence in the country beyond the end of this year.

The talks hit an impasse recently and are taking place against a backdrop of increasing calls in the United States for a U.S. withdrawal and declining interest in the war itself from many members of the American public.

Crocker struck an emotional note in discussing the recent accomplishments in Iraq, including a sharp decline in violence across much of the country and some preliminary steps toward political reconciliation, such as last week's agreement to schedule provincial elections by Jan. 31.

"All Americans should be and are proud of the achievements in Iraq and the American role in bringing about the change," he said. "Iraq is in a far, far better place than it was, say, 18 months ago."

However, he warned, those gains could be in jeopardy if U.S. interest in the country is allowed to flag. "So I think what Americans need going forward is a sense of strategic patience," he said.

"If we decide we are tired of it, if we decide we don't want to do it anymore and that it is time to turn our attention to other things, this could all go the other way," Crocker warned. "And it is certainly my sense, as someone who has served in the Middle East for the better part of three decades, that you would pay a major long-term price."

He also said it is becoming obvious that Iran wants the current negotiations to fail.

"The evidence is pretty clear," the ambassador said. "It is the stream of public statements coming out of Tehran, political and clerical figures, all criticizing the agreement. So they are being very open about their interference."

In spite of Iran's insistence to the contrary, Crocker said Iran was showing a "fundamental desire to oppose the development of a fully secure and stable Iraq. I think they would like to keep Iraq off balance as a way of being able to control events here to the satisfaction of Tehran."

The negotiations for a long-term security agreement are being carried out with the government against the deadline of a U.N. Security Council resolution, expiring at the end of the year, that provides the legal basis for more than 140,000 U.S. forces in the country.