"Nobody is planning, we are not planning for a war with Iran," Gates said.

Gates said the United States' main aim with regard to Iranian influence inside Iraq is to counter what he called networks providing explosives used to make roadside bombs that are powerful enough to destroy a US tank.

"Because we are acting against the Iranians' activities in Iraq, it has given rise to some of these talks" of US intentions to attack Iran, he said, adding that there is no such plan.

Pace said that over the past month or so, raids against those bomb-supplying networks had netted two Iranians.

Gates said it was too soon to say with confidence whether Iranians were involved in the ambush last week in Karbala, in southern Iraq, that left five American soldiers dead. US officials have said in recent days that they are investigating possible Iranian links.

"The information that I've seen is ambiguous," he said.

Gates also said that US military officers in Baghdad were planning to brief reporters on what is known about Iranian involvement in Iraq but that he and other senior administration officials had intervened to delay the briefing in order to assure that the information to be provided is accurate.

Gates opened his news conference by announcing that he has recommended to President Bush that he nominate Navy Adm. Timothy Keating, currently the commander of US Northern Command, to be the next commander of US Pacific Command, replacing Adm. William Fallon, who has been selected as the next commander of US Central Command.

Gates said he also recommended that his senior military aide, Lt. Gen. Victor "Gene" Renuart, be nominated to replace Keating at Northern Command.

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