TEHRAN, Nov 17: Iranian President Mohammad Khatami said on Wednesday his country was ready to help the Americans get out of a "quagmire" in Iraq, but again ruled out any immediate prospect of direct talks with Washington.

"The Americans are in a quagmire in Iraq and are today looking for a way out. We are ready to help them save themselves so the Iraqi people are saved," he told reporters after a cabinet meeting.

But he said "no direct negotiations with the Americans are on the agenda. "The United States must change its attitude to Iran before any negotiations." President George Bush's administration, which has lumped Iran into an "axis of evil", accuses Tehran of supporting terrorism, aiding Iraqi guerrillas and seeking nuclear weapons.

"We will do anything in our power to solve the Iraqi problem, but we demand an end to the occupation, sovereignty for the Iraqis and elections," President Khatami said, adding "any solution which has the lowest cost for the Iraqi people will be supported by Iran."

Iran confirmed on Monday it would be sending Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi, to an international conference on Iraq taking place in Egypt next week. "It is not the first time the Islamic republic and the American government have found themselves around the same table," Mr Khatami commented, referring to talks in recent years on Afghanistan that involved the two old rivals. -AFP