Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari[/caption](Reuters) - Iraq's foreign minister dismissed Saudi concerns thatIranwas taking control of his country and he said Baghdad sought good relations with both regional powers.
Sunni Muslim powerhouseSaudi Arabia, the main regional rival of Shi'iteIran, fears Tehran's growing influence inIraq, whose government is Shi'ite-led. Riyadh is also concerned thatIranwill gain from any nuclear deal it manages to clinch in its ongoing negotiations with the West.
"Iranhas supportedIraqbut did not send armies toIraqand did not interfere in Iraq's sovereignty", Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari told Reuters in an interview in Cairo late on Tuesday after attending an Arab League meeting.
"We want relations withSaudi Arabiaand withIran... Our openness toSaudi Arabiadoes not mean our relations with other countries will flag ... and this does not meanIraqis becoming Persian."
Powerful Iranian-backed militias have taken charge of the battle against Islamic State militants inIraqsince the Iraqi army deserted en masse last summer.Iranhas recently sent an elite Revolutionary Guard commander to oversee part of the battle in Tikrit north of Baghdad.
"The situation in Tikrit is a prime example of what we are worried about.Iranis taking over the country," Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal told a news conference last week.
Asked about those comments, Jaafari said the fighting in Tikrit was the result of Iraqi efforts, adding: "It's no secret there are countries supporting us".
Iraqi officials sayIranhelped organize Shi'ite volunteers and militia forces last year after Grand Ayatollah Sistani appealed to Iraqis to defend their country following big territorial advances by Islamic State.
However, the officials put the number of Iranian advisers inIraqin the hundreds, far fewer than the 3,000 U.S. officers trainingIraqi troops. U.S. and coalition forces are also conducting air strikes against Islamic State fighters inIraq.
Saudi Arabiahas also expressed concern about Iran's growing influence inYemen, where it has supplied weapons, money and training to the Shi'ite Houthi militia, according to Yemeni and Iranian officials.
Jaafari sought to highlight evidence of improving Iraqi-Saudi relations.
"We have cooperated to define a building for the Saudi embassy in Baghdad ... and we welcomed a delegation from the Saudi foreign ministry," he said.
Saudi Arabiacut ties withIraqafter then-dictator Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990. Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia's late King Abdullah ordered missions to be opened in Baghdad and Arbil, capital of Iraq's Kurdish region.
By Reuters
