TEHRAN Majlis Speaker Hojjatoleslam Mahdi Karrubi here on Sunday said thanks to President Khatami's policy of detente and confidence building, the process of expanding Iran's relations with all European countries, especially Germany has gained momentum.

Karrubi, in meeting with German Federal Assembly President Wolfgang Thierse pointed to the longstanding and deep-rooted relations between Iran and Germany and said there were little ups and downs in bilateral ties in recent years.

The German official arrived in Tehran on Saturday evening at the invitation of his Iranian counterpart.

According to Majlis press office, Karrubi underlined the lofty status and effective role of parliaments in the two countries and said parliamentary ties can prepare the grounds for expansion of bilateral relations in various fields and that the Iranian Majlis supports such expansion of ties in all fields.

Referring to the idea of dialogue among civilizations, Karrubi pointed out that the idea has been extensively welcomed in many countries and expressed hope that in the year of dialogue among civilizations, all discords between governments would be resolved through dialogue, understanding and sincerity.

For his part, Thierse pointed to the growing trend in the relations between Tehran and Berlin and said the increase in exchange visits by the officials of the two countries clearly demonstrates the interest and preparedness of both countries for expansion and strengthening of bilateral ties.

He praised the initiative by President Mohammad Khatami in bringing up the idea of dialogue among civilizations and said his country is fully prepared to have any kind of consultation with Iran on the issue. The idea is an appropriate ground for countries to further understand each other and get closer.

Meanwhile, Iran said on Sunday that the attack by the United States and Britain against Iraqi targets near Baghdad was "just unacceptable".

"Any attack against a Muslim country by the U.S. is unacceptable, including Friday's attack against Baghdad," Iranian parliamentary speaker Mahdi Karrubi told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur DPA in a first official reaction by Teheran.

"We will soon prepare a declaration in this regard in the Parliament." Karrubi added.

The Foreign Ministry has not yet reacted to the attack and, according to informed sources, since the planned declaration would be Tehran's first statement with regard to the new U.S. administration, the reaction was being carefully prepared.

The local media and press have condemned the attack as "new adventurism by the Bush family" and does not accept President George W. Bush's explanation that the attack was a routine operation.

The Iranian media view is that the attack marked the beginning of a new era of American military domination in the Persian Gulf region.