U.S. "very satisfied" with Iraq conference

The United States is "very satisfied" with the two-day international conference on Iraqi security held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, the White House said Friday.

"I think overall for the meeting that took place in Sharm el- Sheikh, we're very satisfied," White House deputy press secretary Dana Perino told a briefing.

Asked if there is any disappointment about the failure of having talks between U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki, Perino said "a meeting with the Iranians was never on the agenda."

However, the spokeswoman noted, Rice did meet with her Syrian counterpart on the sidelines of the international gathering.

"If the opportunity would have presented itself to meet with the Iranians as well, I think that the secretary (Rice) would have been pleased to talk with them. It didn't," Perino said.

But U.S. ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker met briefly with a deputy foreign minister of Iran, the spokeswoman added.

When Iraq security conference began Thursday, there was a wide speculation that Rice could hold historic talks with Mottaki.

Washington has no diplomatic relations with Tehran since April 1980, five months after Iranian students occupied the American embassy in Tehran. Fifty-two Americans were held hostage for 444 days.

Source: Xinhua