Tthe Iranian president has said in Kabul that U. S. military forces do not need to be in Afghanistan because fighting terrorism requires only intelligence operations.

President Hamid Karzai welcomed his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the Afghan capital Wednesday .

There were not only common interests but also common enemies that strengthened ties between the two Asian neighbors, Ahmadinejad further said.

Their enemies "do not want to see our region make progress but instead are willing to see us living in a state of insecurity," Ahmadinejad said in statements published on his Web site.

The visiting president was assured by Karzai that his country would not be used as a staging ground to create regional instability.

The Afghan president said," We clearly announce that no move will be allowed from Afghanistan against any other country."

Ahmadinejad in response to a simultaneous visit to Afghanistan by U. S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates questioned the need for the U. S. troop presence.

The president asked," My question to Mr. Gates is, what is he doing here? Your country is 7,500 miles away from the Middle East."

U. S. military forces are collaborating with their Afghan and international counterparts to take control of the Taliban strongholds in Afghanistan as part of broader counterinsurgency operations.

Military forces were not needed for counter-terrorism efforts, said Ahmadinejad.