The United States expressed doubts on Monday that a reported summit meeting among the leaders of Iraq, Syria and Iran would help curb the spiraling violence in Iraq.

While Washington would support any talks that could improve Iraq's stability, there has been little evidence to suggest Syria and Iran were prepared to change their policy towards Iraq, State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said at a briefing.

"The problem is not what they say, the problem is what they do. In our view, the next step would be to have them move beyond those words and actually take some concrete steps," Casey said.

The United States has accused Syria and Iran of being "state sponsors of terrorism" and has alleged that both countries allow terrorists to cross into Iraq to fight against the U.S.-led coalition troops stationed in the country.

According to reports by the Arab television Al-Jazeera on Monday, Iran has invited Iraqi and Syrian presidents to Teheran for a weekend summit on curbing violence in Iraq. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani has accepted the invitation and will fly to Teheran on Saturday, the TV report said.

The invitations came during a landmark visit to Iraq by Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallim - the highest ranking Syrian official to visit since the toppling of Iraqi former leader Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Source: Xinhua