Iran warns neighbors over U.S. presence in the Gulf

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clipped from news.yahoo.com TEHRAN (Reuters) – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned Gulf countries on Thursday against the U.S. presence in the region, saying Washington aimed to dominate their energy resources in the name of fighting terrorism. Iran opposes the U.S. military presence on its borders in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Gulf, saying western military intervention is the root of insecurity in the region. "We warn the countries in the region over the presence of bullying powers ... they have not come here to restore security or to counter drug trafficking," Ahmadinejad said in a speech during a visit to the southern province of Hormuzgan. The hardline president accused the West of planning to dominate energy resources in the Gulf and said: "People in the region will cut off their hands from the Persian Gulf's oil." "Why is it that those who say they want to fight terrorism are never successful? I think it is because they are the ones who are playing a double game," he said.

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