Iran says Baghdad conference was constructive
Foreign Ministry in Tehran says convention that saw Iran, US hold direct talks for first time since 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq is first step toward promoting security, stability in war-torn country. Despite Hosseini's optimistic words, envoys trade harsh words, blame each other for crisis
Iran's Foreign Ministry on Sunday said an international conference in Baghdad that saw Tehran and Washington hold direct talks for the first time since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq was constructive and a first step toward promoting security and stability in the war-torn country.
Tehran also expressed hope that a proposed second, follow-up meeting on Iraq would be successful, according to Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini.
"If such a conference to be held at the foreign minister level happens in the near future in Baghdad, then it is possible to expect success," Hosseini told reporters.
Hosseini declined to say if Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki would attend the proposed second meeting.
The spokesman said Saturday's meeting in Baghdad included "constructive negotiations" among the delegations and could be considered a "first step" in promoting security and stability in Iraq. Hosseini also said Iran was ready to support any plan that would help end the bloodshed in its neighboring country.
"Leaving security affairs to the Iraqi government, arranging a timetable for the departure of foreign forces, and taking an indiscriminate approach to all terrorist groups can bring peace and security in Iraq," Hosseini said.
Harsh words
Despite Hosseini's optimistic words on Sunday, during the Baghdad meeting Saturday, the US and Iranian envoys traded harsh words and blamed each other for the country's crisis.
During the talks, US envoy David Satterfield pointed to his briefcase which he said contained documents proving Iran was arming Shiite Muslim militias in Iraq."
"Your accusations are merely a cover for your failures in Iraq," Iran's chief envoy Abbas Araghchi shot back, according to an official familiar to the discussions who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.
The US ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, only said that American delegates exchanged views with the Iranians "Directly and in the presence of others" during talks, which he described as "constructive and businesslike."
The delegates at the Baghdad meeting also proposed an "expanded" follow-up meeting, which could include the G-8 nations and others, in Istanbul, Turkey, next month. Iraqi officials, however, say they will urge that the next meeting take place again in Baghdad.
For Shiite-dominated Iran, opening more direct contacts with Washington could help promote their shared interests in preventing full-scale war between Sunnis and Shiites. But the US accuses Tehran of supporting the Shiite militias in Iraq - charges Iran denies. The US and Iran severed diplomatic ties after Iranian militants seized the US Embassy in Tehran following the 1979 Islamic revolution.
In the late 1990s, US and Iranian envoys were part of an eight-nation group studying Afghanistan's troubles under the Taliban, and both nations took part in meetings to establish an interim Afghan government after the Taliban's fall in 2001.
Before Saturday, the last time there was diplomatic contact between the two was in late 2004 at a meeting of 20 nations in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheik to discuss Iraq's future.
Iranian state-run television also reported that Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi arrived in Tehran on Sunday to discuss bilateral ties as well as regional issues with Iranian leaders.
