TEHRAN, Iran — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki pushed Iran on Sunday to back off its fierce opposition to a U.S.-Iraqi security pact, Iraqi officials said, as he promised Iranian leaders that Iraq will not be a launching pad for any attack on their country.
The agreement has become a center of contention as Baghdad tries to balance its close ties to both Washington and Tehran. Iran fiercely opposes the deal, fearing it will lead to permanent U.S bases on its doorstep amid fears of an eventual American attack.
Iran has led a vocal campaign against the deal, with powerful former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani vowing last week that people in Iraq and the region won't allow it. That has led to U.S. accusations that Tehran is actively trying to scuttle the agreement — putting al-Maliki's government in a tight spot between its two rival allies.
Al-Maliki's visit to Tehran, his second this year, appeared aimed at getting Iran to tone down its opposition and ease criticism within Iraq, where followers of anti-U.S. Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr — who has close ties to Tehran — have held weekly protests against the deal.
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But the security pact also faces strong criticism from members of al-Maliki's own Shiite-dominated coalition. Two Iraqi officials familiar with the negotiations warned on Sunday that a deal is unlikely to be reached before the end of President Bush's term in January unless Washington backs off some demands seen as giving American forces too much freedom to operate in Iraq and infringing on Iraqi sovereignty.
In his talks with Iranian officials, al-Maliki offered assurances that his country is no threat to Iran, according to a statement released by his Baghdad office.
"Iraq, today, does not represent a threat as it was during the former regime because it has become a constitutional country based on the rule of law," the statement quoted him as saying.
"Iraq is working on developing its relations with the countries of the region on the basis of mutual understanding and cooperation."
In remarks to state television later Sunday, government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Iraq was sovereign and free "to enter in any pact helping it achieve its national interests."
"Moreover the others should not be acting as attorneys for the Iraqis or urge the Iraqis to reject the pact as what happened last week, when the Iranians urged the Iraqis to reject the pact," he said.
Other developments
● A suicide truck bomber who concealed his explosives under tanned animal hides struck a U.S. patrol base Sunday in northern Iraq, killing one U.S. soldier and wounding 18 other Americans, U.S. and Iraqi officials said.
Two Iraqi contractors working at the base in Tamim province also were wounded, according to a brief statement from the military.
● In Baghdad, four police recruits were killed in a blast at the National Police headquarters, authorities said. Another 22 people were wounded near the building's gate where recruits were gathering, they said.
● A mortar shell landed just outside Baghdad's Green Zone on Sunday, killing three civilians and wounding seven others, police said. The mortar was apparently targeting the Defense Ministry, which is inside the U.S.-guarded diplomatic zone, they said.
● In Basra, Shiite extremists fired 10 rockets Sunday morning at the British base at the city's airport in the first attack there in nearly a month. No casualties were reported.
● The U.S. command also announced that American soldiers in Baghdad captured an Iraqi arms dealer and "assassination-squad" leader responsible for trafficking Shiite extremists in and out of neighboring Iran for training.
The arrest followed long-standing U.S. allegations that Iran arms, trains and funds Shiite militiamen inside Iraq — charges Tehran denies.
U.S. toll in Iraq
• Deaths: 4,091
• Wounded: 30,182
No casualties identified.
Source: Department of Defense.
