Iranian President Ahmadinejad makes first trip to Afghanistan, meets Karzai

(14 Aug 2007) 1. Wide of Hamid Karzai, Afghan President and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iranian President walking to podium 2. Mid of reporter asking question 3. SOUNDBITE: (Farsi) Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iranian President: "The same allegation is made in Iraq. They are saying that they have discovered some Iranian weapons. What is the reason, why are they saying such things. Iran is a big country. I have serious doubts about this issue." 4. Karzai and Ahmadinejad at podium 5. SOUNDBITE: (Farsi) Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iranian President: "There are some people who typically want to use their power as much as they can to impose themselves, as well as their personal ideas, on others. This is the root of terrorism." 6. Cutaway of Afghan officials 7. SOUNDBITE: (Dari) Hamid Karzai Afghan President: "It will be a big pleasure for Afghanistan to bring together these two big nations (Iran and America) but this depends what the two sides think about this issue. If there is a will Afghanistan will take steps in this initiative." 8. Cutaway of cameras 9. Karzai and Ahmadinejad leaving news conference STORYLINE: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made his first trip to neighbouring Afghanistan on Tuesday, a week after Afghan leader Hamid Karzai said Tehran was playing a positive role in his country. The trip comes after U.S. President George W. Bush said during a press conference with Karzai last week that he thought Iran was playing a destabilising role in Afghanistan where the Taliban have staged a comeback. At the time Karzai countered Bush, saying he had heard reports that Iranian weapons are flowing into his nation but that so far Tehran has been a ''helper and a solution.'' Some Western and Persian Gulf governments have alleged that the Islamic government in Tehran is secretly bolstering Taliban fighters and providing weaponry. At a joint news conference on Tuesday Ahmadinejad denied that his country was helping the militants. ''The same allegation is made in Iraq. They are saying that they have discovered some Iranian weapons.'' ''I have serious doubts about this issue,'' he added. Iran, which helped establish an interim government following the fall of the Taliban, has given substantial aid to Afghanistan and has said previously that it made no sense that a Shiite-led government like itself would help the fundamentalist Sunni movement of the Taliban. Karzai meanwhile said that he hoped that Afghanistan would to ''bring together these two big nations,'' referring to Iran and America. ''If there is a will Afghanistan will take steps in this initiative,'' he added. Relations between the Afghanistan and Iran have been strained in recent months over a broad Iranian crackdown on illegal Afghan migrants. About 100,000 Afghans have been deported, and many have accused Iranian authorities of abuse. Iran denies the allegations, saying it has forced labourers back home because the 1.5 (m) million undocumented Afghan migrants are an enormous burden on its economy. After his one-day stop in Afghanistan, Ahmadinejad is scheduled to travel to Turkmenistan to meet with the country's new president and then to Kyrgyzstan to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the Iranian news agency IRNA reported. The SCO was created by Russia and China to address regional security threats, foster economic integration and counter U.S. influence in the strategically placed, energy-rich Central Asia. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...