McCain criticizes Obama for wanting Iran talks

By Steve Holland

CHICAGO, May 19 (Reuters) - U.S. Republican presidential candidate John McCain accused Democratic front-runner Barack Obama on Monday of underestimating the threat posed by Iran and ridiculed his pledge to meet Iran's leader if elected.

McCain, in a theme likely to play out in the campaign for the November election, sought to portray Obama as too inexperienced to be trusted as commander in chief.

The Arizona senator traveled to Chicago to give a speech to the National Restaurant Association in which he vowed to aid small farmers by targeting agricultural tariffs and subsidies doled out to agribusiness.

But as he began his speech, he departed from his prepared remarks to criticize Obama, saying the Illinois senator who is on the cusp of winning the Democratic presidential nomination had said the threat posed to U.S. national security by Iran was small compared to that of the Cold War-era Soviet Union.

McCain said Iran obviously is not a superpower and does not possess the military power the former Soviet Union had, "but that does not mean that the threat posed by Iran is insignificant."

He accused Iran of seeking nuclear weapons -- Tehran denies this -- and said it is providing some of the deadliest explosive devices used in Iraq to kill U.S. troops, is sowing discord in the Middle East and would like to destroy Israel.

"Should Iran acquire nuclear weapons, that danger would become very dire, indeed. They might not be a superpower, but the threat the government of Iran poses is anything but tiny," he said.

'RECKLESS JUDGMENT'