U.S. tells Iran face to face: Stop supporting militias

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The United States told Iran on Monday its support for militias fighting in Iraq needs to cease, said Ryan Crocker, U.S. ambassador to Iraq.

Crocker spoke at a news conference after a meeting with Iranian diplomats in Baghdad -- the first public and formal meeting between U.S. and Iranian representatives since the United States cut off diplomatic relations 27 years ago.

"I laid out before the Iranians a number of our direct specific concerns about their behavior in Iraq," Crocker said. "Their support for militias that are fighting both the Iraqi security forces and coalition forces; the fact that a lot of the explosives and ammunition that are used by these groups are coming in from Iran; that such activities led by the [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] Quds Force needed to cease and that we would be looking for results."

Crocker said the Iranians did not respond directly to the U.S. allegations.

"The Iranians did not go into any great detail," he said. "They made the assertion that the coalition presence was an occupation and that the effort to train and equip the Iraqi security forces had been inadequate to the challenges faced.

"We of course responded on both points, making clear that coalition forces are here at the Iraqi government's invitation and under [U.N.] Security Council authorities, and that we have put literally billions of dollars into training and equipping an increasingly capable set of Iraqi security forces."

Crocker said the Iranian delegation proposed a trilateral mechanism to coordinate on security matters in Iraq. He said officials in Washington would have to consider whether to pursue that idea.

Crocker characterized the talks as "businesslike."

"We both laid out our support for the government of [Iraqi] Prime Minister [Nuri al-] Maliki as he undertakes a number of very difficult challenges," he said.

Iranian officials did not immediately comment on the content of the discussions.

Before the meeting -- which lasted four hours -- al-Maliki aide Hasan al-Sneid told CNN that the prime minister would call for dialogue on Iraq between Washington and Tehran, urging them to clear contentious issues between them, with the hope that Monday's meeting will pave the way for broader talks.

Al-Sneid also said al-Maliki would reiterate that Iraq will not be used as a launchpad for terrorism in the region.

In his opening statement, al-Maliki laid out no timetable for the withdrawal of U.S.-led coalition forces from Iraq.

"The presence of multinational forces in Iraq is dependent on completing the process of building Iraqi security forces and their readiness," he said.

Crocker said there was no discussion in Monday's meeting of a timetable for a pullout of U.S. troops.

Although al-Maliki opened the session, Iraqi National Security Adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie was the only Iraqi official sitting in on the meetings, one of his aides said.

In addition to Crocker, the U.S. delegation included Daniel Speckhard, deputy chief of mission. Ambassador Hassan Kazemi Qomi was among those representing the Iranians.

No talk of prisoner swap
A number of other issues loomed over the U.S.-Iran talks.

Tehran said on state-run media over the weekend that it has uncovered U.S.-run spy rings inside Iran and would release more details in the coming days. There was no immediate response from the White House. (Full story)

Tehran recently charged Haleh Esfandiari, one of four Iranian-Americans detained in Tehran, with conducting activities against the Iranian government, a charge dismissed by Washington.

The State Department repeatedly has called for Esfandiari's release as well as for more information about three other Iranian-Americans who have been detained, imprisoned or had their passports revoked.

In addition, Robert Levinson, an American and retired FBI agent, has been missing since March 8, when he was last seen on Iran's Kish Island.

The U.S. military is holding seven "Iranian intelligence service personnel" in Iraq, spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell told CNN's "Late Edition" in an interview taped Friday.

Tehran has referred to five of the Iranians who were arrested in January as "diplomats" and is seeking their release.

When asked if he thought a prisoner swap would be discussed at Monday's meeting, Caldwell said, "There's nothing of that nature that I know of."

He said the Iranians were "detained just like anybody else who has broken the law" in Iraq.

Crocker said the subject did not come up in Monday's talks.

These disputes come amid an international showdown over Iran's nuclear program. U.S. officials insist Tehran is seeking nuclear weapons, though Iran says the program is for civilian energy purposes only.

Talks mark rare meeting
The Iraq Study Group late last year called on the Bush administration to initiate talks with Iran and Syria.

The United States broke off diplomatic ties with Iran in April 1980 in the midst of the seizure of the U.S. Embassy. Iranian students occupied the embassy from November 1979 until January 1981, when they released the remaining 52 hostages.

While Monday marks the first time U.S. and Iranian diplomats have met bilaterally, they have taken part in informal meetings with Iraq's neighbors in recent months.