WikiLeaks hit Iran policy

Iranian officials have scoffed at WikiLeaks documents showing calls by Arab leaders for the destruction of Tehran's nuclear programme, but analysts and observers say this unveiled hostility may indeed impact on Iran's foreign policy. US diplomatic memos from Arab countries in the Gulf released by whistleblower WikiLeaks over the past few days uncover a fixation on the Iranian nuclear threat as well as fear that regional conflict is inevitable. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad set the official line on Monday by dismissing the documents as "worthless" and a "mischief", insisting Tehran's ties with its Arab neighbours would not be affected. Iran's foreign ministry on Tuesday branded the revelations a "suspicious plot" and called on Arab neighbours across the Gulf not to fall into the whistleblower's "trap." "The enemies of the Islamic world are pursuing a project of Iranophobia and disunity," foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said. But Ahmadinejad's reaction, which is similar to that of many other world leaders, may prove hard to sustain, several diplomats and analysts said. "The WikiLeaks documents have not unveiled anything. Iranians have long been aware of the sentiments of Arab countries in the Gulf," a Tehran-based Western diplomat told. "But having written proof that your neighbours are encouraging your enemy to attack you leaves its mark," he said. According to leaked memos, the majority of Arab leaders in the Gulf have pressed the United States to halt Iran's nuclear programme, with Saudi King Abdullah calling for a US military attack to "cut off the head of the snake."