Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has agreed in principle to meet Iranian ex-President Mohammad Khatami when the former Iranian leader visits the United States this week, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

Carter's term as president was dominated by the rupture in relations following the 1979 Iranian revolution and the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days until the day he left office.

"Carter, who has every reason to be angry about the way in which the Iranian revolution undid his presidency over the hostage affair, is willing to meet, with no hesitation, a person who was president of the Islamic republic and who never disavowed Ayatollah Khomeni's actions when he was supreme leader," William Quandt, a national security official in charge of the Middle East during the Carter administration was quoted as saying.

The U.S. State Department said on Tuesday that it had issued a visa to Khatami to visit Washington.

There will be no restrictions on Khatami's travel in the United States, State Department spokesman Tom Casey said, adding, "This is an opportunity in part for former President Khatami to hear the concerns of the American people."

Khatami, who served as Iranian president from 1997 to 2005, was described as a reformer in Iran's political arena. He is scheduled to speak at Washington National Cathedral on Sept 7.

Khatami's schedule may also include speeches at the University of Virginia and to an Islamic group in Chicago. He may pay a private visit to Thomas Jefferson's home at Monticello, according to sources familiar with his trip. He will begin his visit in New York at a U.N. conference on the dialogue of civilizations.

"Mr Khatami is free to meet with who he chooses and is able to speak freely in the United States," a White House official said on condition of anonymity.

Khatami's visit comes amid high tensions between Washington and Tehran over Iran's suspected program to develop nuclear weapons and its alleged support for Hezbollah guerrillas.

Source: Xinhua