The U.S. and Iran have held their first face-to-face talks in nearly 30 years. On Monday, the U.S. and Iranian ambassador to Iraq met in Baghdad to discuss the Iraq War. The talks did not touch on other issues, including the standoff over Iran’s nuclear activities. U.S. officials say they pressed Iran on supporting Shiite militias inside Iraq.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki: “We definitely believe that the withdrawing of foreign troops (Americans) and the cooperation of regional countries with the elected government of Iraq are the main keys and final solution for solving the problems in Iraq.”

The talks came as the U.S. continued a series of naval exercises in the Gulf sea off Iran’s coast. The fleet of nine U.S. military ships includes two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.

U.S. Navy Commander Kevin Quinn: “We are conducting operations in support of our coalition troops on the ground in Iraq right now. Our aircraft are flying missions up there on a daily basis in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. We are also doing training operations. We’re here along with the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group and the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group. We are doing a series of defensive-oriented training events, such as defending against simulated air threats, surface threats, sub-surface threats.”