A warm welcome for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton as she arrives in Baghdad for high-level nuclear talks with senior Iranian negotiators.
Iraqi foreign minister Hoshiyar Zebari and officials greeted the EU chief at the airport.
Ashton is representing six world powers - the United States, Russia, China, Germany, France and Britain - at Wednesday's meeting - only the second since talks resumed in April after a 15-month standoff.
The main goal of the six - known collectively as the P5+1 - representing the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany - is to get Iran to shut down a higher grade uranium program launched in 2010.
Producing such highly enriched material in these quantities shortens the time needed to build a nuclear bomb.
Iran, which has repeatedly ruled out suspending the program, says its nuclear programme is a peaceful bid to generate electricity.
The talks are taking place inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone with around 15,000 police and troops guarding the venue.
Sunita Rappai, Reuters
