28 June 2004	Monday	09 Jamadi-ul-Awwal 1425

TEHRAN, June 27: Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi said on Sunday that Nato was "not welcome" in the Middle East region, ahead of the alliance's summit in neighbouring Turkey.

"We are opposed to Nato's intervention in the business of the Middle East," he told the official news agency IRNA, labelling the body as a "European organization created for European security".

"The interference of the organization in the Middle East is not welcome," Mr Kharazi said.

During their two-day summit in Istanbul, Nato leaders are set to approve military training for the new Iraqi government, easing months of division over the US-led occupation that officially ends this week.-AFP