British, Iranian ministers meet at Iraq conference

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, May 3 (Reuters) British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett had talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on the sidelines of a conference on Iraq today, a British official said.

''There is the potential for both countries to benefit from a more constructive relationship,'' added the Foreign Office official, who asked not to be named and gave no substantial details of the talks.

Unlike its ally the United States, Britain has diplomatic relations with Iran and high-level contacts do take place.

Beckett last spoke to Mottaki in March by telephone when she urged him to speed the release of 15 British military personnel captured by Iran.

Tehran said the sailors had entered Iranian waters while Britain said they were in Iraq. They were freed after two weeks.

Beckett and Mottaki were together at a meeting in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on an International Pact offering support to Iraqi institutions in return for political and economic reform.

Reuters RS DB2206