Ahmadinejad plays down talk of US strike

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad played down talk of a possible American strike against his country during a visit to Bahrain.

“Iran doesn’t expect any military escalation in the region,” the Iranian president told reporters during a half-day stop to Bahrain on his way to a summit of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries in neighbouring Saudi Arabia.

Ahmadinejad insisted he didn’t foresee war “even though the west may expect this to happen.”

“Iran won’t allow and won’t work to accelerate a possible war,” he said.

“We don’t favour war, but at the same time, we have made preparations to face any development, and we are ready,” the hard-line president warned.

Tensions between the US and Iran are high over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program and its refusal to stop uranium enrichment.

The US and its allies fear Iran aims to make nuclear weapons, but Tehran insists its program is peaceful.

Bahrain and other small Gulf Arab states worry a face-off between Iran and the US would endanger their oil-based economies and destabilise the region. They also fear Iranian retaliation for their alliance with the US, whose 5th Fleet is headquartered in Bahrain.

Ahmadinejad said after meeting Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa that his trip aimed at expanding “economic and cultural relations” between the two countries.

He signed a memorandum of understanding to export natural gas to Bahrain.

“Iran will provide one million cubic feet per day of natural gas, and the details are expected to be finalised within a year before signing a deal on this strategic project,” said Bahrain’s foreign minister, Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifa.