( IRNA ) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki underlined the need for Iran's participation in the conference of Iraq's neighbors in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.
Maliki told the Egyptian state-run daily of Al Jomhuria that Iran's absence from the conference of neighboring countries of Iraq will deal a blow to the outcome of the talks.
Underlining that the Sharm El-Sheikh conference is not scheduled to exclude the issues of Iraq, he expressed hope that US officials would meet Iranian and Syrian representatives, and Tehran would hold negotiations with Arab countries.
He noted that his country pursues a policy of dialogue with regional countries to resolve its problems.
The Iraqi premier, who is on a tour of regional states, left for Oman after visiting Egypt and Kuwait.
Foreign ministers of Iraq's neighboring states, permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and Group 8 are scheduled to convene in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, on May 3-4 to review developments in Iraq.