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Bush says force OK against Iranians

Mark Silva Chicago Tribune

WASHINGTON – Asserting the right of the U.S. military inside Iraq to defend itself and Iraqis against threats from Tehran, President Bush vowed Monday that Iranian aggression inside Iraq would be met with American force.

At the same time, Bush asserted his determination to resolve what the U.S. sees as Iran’s ambitions for nuclear weaponry through diplomatic channels.

With a two-track message of stern military warnings and promises of peaceful diplomacy, Bush is confronting an increasingly complicated conflict with the Iranian government.

“If Iran escalates its military action in Iraq to the detriment of our troops and or innocent Iraqi people, we will respond firmly,” Bush said in an interview with National Public Radio. “We will do what it takes to protect our troops. It makes common sense for the commander in chief to say to our troops and the Iraqi people – and the Iraqi government – that we will help you defend yourself from people that want to sow discord and harm.”

The president also suggested that it is “very important … not to mix issues” involving Iran.

One issue is Iran’s nuclear ambitions, Bush said, insisting that he is confident in the power of diplomacy to resolve it. “The message that we are working to send to the Iranian regime and the Iranian people is that you will become increasingly isolated, if you continue to pursue a nuclear weapon,” Bush said.

The other issue is Iran’s support of insurgents inside Iraq as well as in other countries in the region, with the U.S. committed to blocking Iranian interference in Iraq.

The president repeatedly has asserted the right of U.S. forces to intervene in the Iranian shipment of weaponry into Iraq, with Bush blaming Iran for supporting radical Shiite groups that have formed death squads in Iraq. And the White House has authorized U.S. forces to stop Iranian forces inside Iraq.

But Bush insists he has no plans to invade Iran, despite worries voiced in Congress.

“I have no intent upon incur- – going into Iran,” Bush said. “I mean, this is the kind of thing that happens in Washington. People ascribe, you know, motives to me beyond a simple statement – of course we’ll protect our troops. I don’t know how anybody can then say, well, protecting the troops means that we’re going to invade Iran.”

Iran has confirmed that the U.S. detained two of its security officials last month, but says those officials, later released, were engaged in legitimate talks and should not have been detained. Iran also has announced plans to open branch banks and other economic ties with Iraq, according to a New York Times interview with the Iranian ambassador to Iraq.