IRAN INTENDS TO UPGRADE DEFENSE TIES WITH QATAR

ABU DHABI [MENL] -- Iran wants to establish formal defense relations withQatar as part of an effort to win Gulf Arab support for the end of the U.S.military presence in the region. The Iranian effort has targeted Qatar as the first Gulf Arab countryprepared to sign a defense treaty with the Shi'ite republic. Gulf defensesources said Iran seeks Qatar's support for the removal of the U.S. militarypresence in the Persian Gulf in exchange for Iranian military guarantees.