By DPA
Washington/Baghdad : Officials from the US and Iran in their first formal talks in almost three decades met in Iraq Monday to discuss the security situation in the country.
The discussions were welcomed by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki as a result of "positive conditions".
"We want a stable Iraq, one without international forces or regional interference," al-Maliki told reporters, insisting that Iraq was not just a mediator of the Baghdad talks, but "the main side that guides the dialogue".
"We don't want Iraq to turn into a base of terrorist organisations that harm Iraq and its neighbours. We want a similar position from other countries, especially neighbours and regional (allies)," al-Maliki said.
The US and Iranian delegations were headed by the two country's ambassadors to Iraq, Ryan Crocker and Hassan Kazemi Qumi.
Senior Iraqi diplomats and Foreign Affairs Ministry officials were also in attendance, reports said.
Iranian officials said their side was concerned about increasing pressure from the US and accusations that the Shia Islamic state was responsible for sectarian-driven violence in Iraq.
Before the meeting, Iranian officials said that Iran believed the US forces were responsible for breeding violence.
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki earlier told reporters that his country's representatives would explain to the US the mistakes they had made in Iraq.
Observers also said that among the key demands of Tehran during Monday's meeting would be the release of five Iranians detained by US forces in Iraq and whom Iran deemed "diplomats".
However al-Maliki rejected any expectation by Iran that a timetable for US withdrawal would be implemented.
"The presence of the multinational forces is linked with the completeness and the readiness of the Iraqi security forces," the Iraqi premier said Monday. "Their presence is connected to the security situation and Iraq will not be (used) to threaten any of its neighbours."
Iraqi government sources told Voices of Iraq news agency that the discussions were taking place in the heavily fortified Green Zone.
These are the first formal talks being held between the US and Iran since relations were broken in the wake of the 1979 hostage crisis.
Washington has accused Tehran of fomenting violence in Iraq by providing material support to militant groups responsible for attacks on US soldiers.
Qumi, who represents Iran at the meeting, is reportedly a Quds Force officer. The Quds Force is a special unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guards that have recently been accused by the US of supporting Shia death squads in Iraq.
The US and Iran have been at loggerheads since the fall of the US-backed Shah and the US embassy hostage crisis, but had informal contacts during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.