Larijani meets Maliki in Baghdad
Afp, Baghdad
Iran's top national security official Ali Larijani arrived in Baghdad yesterday on a previously unannounced three-day visit and opened talks with senior officials, state television reported. The three-day visit came as the neighbours announced that Iran would send its foreign minister to a conference of world and regional powers this week to find ways to help Iraq build peace and overcome its current security crisis. "The visit of Mr Larijani is in the framework of bilateral relations. He will probably talk about security questions and the international conference" in Egypt, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said in Tehran. An Iraqi government official confirmed Larijani's arrival and Iraqi state television later announced that he met with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Iran maintains close ties with many figures in Maliki's Shia-led government, despite the suspicions of his embattled coalition's other main ally, the United States. US commanders allege that Iranian agents fund, train and equip many of the extremist factions involved in Iraq's insurgency and sectarian war, including those, which target Iraqi and American forces. Five Iranian officials have been in US custody in Iraq since December, when they were seized in a raid in the northern city of Arbil.
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