Iran blasts US plan to keep buildup in Mideast

Senior Iranian officials blasted the US plan for keeping their troops in the Middle-East following the pullout from Iraq. "The Americans are not following a rational and prudent approach. They always have a deficit, unfortunately, in rationality and prudence," Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi said during a joint press conference with his Iraqi counterpart Hoshyar Zebari. Salehi's comments came in response to reports that the Obama administration plans to bolster the US military presence in the region after it withdraws the remaining troops from Iraq this year. As for reports that US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have warned Iran not to meddle in Iraq after the US pullout, Salehi said, "Iraq does not need anybody to meddle in its internal affairs." "Iraq is an independent country and a great nation with 6,000 years of written history. The Iraqis know better than anybody else how to run their country." For his part, Zebari said that the government of Iraq and its people will be the only parties that will fill the vacuum after the US troops' withdrawal from Iraq by the end of the year. "No other party can fill the vacuum in Iraq except the people of Iraq and the government of Iraq after the withdrawal of American forces of Iraq," Zebari said. Late on Sunday, Iran's top diplomat arrived in Baghdad on an official visit and held meetings with Zebari and other top Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, to discuss the latest development in the region and means to boost bilateral ties.