President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stressed Sunday the “special and exceptional” relations between Tehran and Baghdad, indicating that efforts should be made to expand these relations on the political, economic, and cultural levels.

In a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki who arrived to Tehran Sunday in a two day visit, Ahmadinejad pointed out that “the arrogant powers and enemies of the Iranian and Iraqi nations are worried of the strength and independence of the two countries,” adding that “the domineering powers, which have faced blows by the two nations are conspiring to keep the two countries weak in order to dominate the whole region.”

Fars news agency further quoted the Iranian president as saying that “today, all historical, cultural and political factors in the Iran-Iraq relations require both sides to move towards the progress and prosperity of both nations.”

In parallel, Maliki also met with Iranian First Vice-President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi and Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani who considered that “the presence of a stable Iraq near Iran will help achieve peace in the region.”

For his part, the Iraqi prime minister, whose visit is aimed at discussing the 2nd round of nuclear talks which is set to take place in Baghdad on May 23, also hoped for enhancing the bilateral relations between the two countries.