TEHRAN – Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said here on Tuesday that the first step toward solving the security problem in Iraq must be the withdrawal of the occupiers and the transfer of responsibility for security to the popular Iraqi government.

“The United States will definitely not succeed in Iraq, and with the continuation of the occupation of Iraq, the Americans have bitten off more than they can chew,” Ayatollah Khamenei said during a meeting with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.

“The main reason for the current situation in Iraq is the U.S. policy that is being implemented by some intermediaries,” the Leader said.

He went on to say that U.S. agents in the region implementing this policy are responsible for Iraq’s insecurity.

“Strengthening terrorist groups and fanning the flames of insecurity and murder in Iraq will be very dangerous for the U.S. agents and the region,” he cautioned. Ayatollah Khamenei called the continuation of efforts to foment insecurity in Iraq a massive disaster causing misery for the Iraqis, saying, “The implementers of such policies seek to bring a dictator like Saddam (Hussein) to power, but they will definitely not succeed.”

The agents of insecurity in Iraq hide themselves under the cover of a Shia-Sunni war, but the truth is that Shias and Sunnis have coexisted peacefully for centuries and there has been no enmity between them, he observed.

“The fomenting of insecurity is meant to undermine the elected Iraqi government. Those who have devised a plan for Iraq, which has not been realized, want to undermine the current situation in every way possible, and their agents in the field are terrorists, takfiris, and former Baathists,” he noted.

Takfiris is a term which refers to people who believe they are the only true Muslims.

Ayatollah Khamenei also announced that the Islamic Republic would rush to the assistance of Iraq if requested.

“The continuation of insecurity and killings in Iraq would be to the detriment of all regional countries, and if the Iraqi government requests, Iran will spare no effort to help establish stability and security in the country,” he said.

The Leader also underlined the necessity of following up and implementing the agreements the two countries have signed in order to expand bilateral ties. For his part, Talabani said that the promotion of ties would serve the interests of both countries, adding, “The agents of insecurity massacring the people are extremely worried about (the establishment of) a democratic and modern Iraq with a popular government.” He stressed that security affairs are not under the control of Iraq, saying, “If security matters are handed over to the Iraqi government, complete security can be established.”

During Talabani’s trip to Tehran, Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad said Iran is prepared to provide assistance to help stem the tide of violence inundating Iraq.