TERHAN, Iran, May 23 (UPI) -- The Iranian government has criticized U.S. policies in Iraq and says it wants coalition forces to leave as soon as possible.
The BBC reported Sunday Iran wants, "the departure of the occupation forces as quickly as possible and the restitution of authority to the Iraqi people."
Since diplomatic ties between the United States and Iran have been severed for some time, Iran delivered its message via the Swiss embassy.
The BBC said although Iran has officially thrown its weight behind moderate cleric Ayatollah Ali Sistani, some elements have sympathy for the younger and more militant Moqtada Sadr.
In a separate Sunday development, Iran denied it received confidential information from Ahmed Chalabi, a senior member of the U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council.
However, Iran has acknowledged it had a "continuous and permanent dialogue" with Chalabi, who is accused of passing U.S. secrets to Tehran.
Chalabi has fallen out of favor with the United States since reports on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction provided by his informants have proved false.
