Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani arrives to Saadabad palace for a meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani arrives at Saadabad palace for a meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, center, walks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, left, during a welcoming ceremony at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Afghan President Hamid Karzai, left, and Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, listen to their national anthems during an arrival ceremony at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived to Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, center, walks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, left, during a welcoming ceremony at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, right, walks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, left, during a welcoming ceremony at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, left, walks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, center, during a welcoming ceremony at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, right, shakes hands with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, left, during a welcoming ceremony at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, right, stands with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, before their meeting at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, right, stands with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, before their meeting at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, right, speaks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, during their meeting at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Afghan President Hamid Karzai, speaks with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, during their meeting at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Hassan Rouhani, Hamid Karzai
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, smiles during a meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, at Tehran’s Saadabad Palace in Iran, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. Karzai arrived in Tehran for a one-day visit on Sunday to discuss regional and international issues with Iranian officials. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Prev 1 of 13 Next
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani says his country opposes the presence of foreign forces in Afghanistan and the region.
A Sunday report by the official IRNA news agency quotes Rouhani as telling visiting Afghan President Hamid Karzai: “We believe that all foreign forces should leave the region and that the security of Afghanistan should be handed over to people of the country.”
Iran has long opposed a planned agreement to allow U.S. forces to remain stationed on its doorstep in neighboring Afghanistan. The two countries have about 945 kilometers (580 miles) of common borders.
The United States is pressing Karzai to sign the deal to extend its military presence past 2014, when NATO and United Nations mandates expire and all foreign troops leave the country.
