(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-04-07 17:14

TEHRAN - Iran received an official request from the United State to hold a fourth round of talks to improve Iraq security, the official IRNA news agency Monday reported.

"We are studying the US officials repeated request which was sent to us as an official note to hold new round of talks on Iraq, " Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini was quoted as saying at the weekly press conference.

The request was handed to Iran by the Swiss embassy in Tehran, which handles the US interests there since the Islamic republic broke diplomatic ties with Washington in 1980, said the spokesman.

Iran and the US have held three rounds of talks over Iraq's security issue last year amid tensions escalated between the two foes due to the disputed nuclear issue and Tehran's role in Iraq's unrest.

However, all the talks failed to achieve a breakthrough and since then no meeting has been held again.

The United State has repeatedly accused Iran of providing weapons and funds to the insurgents to fight against coalition forces in Iraq.

Iran has denied all the accusations, saying "the US just wanted to find excuses for its failed policies in Iraq" and it was the existence of US forces made that war-torn country volatile.