Washington  - Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki made a short visit Wednesday to Washington after leaving the annual United Nations General Assembly in New York, the US State Department announced late Wednesday.

Mottaki and his wife were allowed to visit the Iranian interests section, which is hosted at the Pakistani embassy because Washington has had no formal diplomatic relations with Tehran since US diplomats were held hostage in Iran from 1979 to 1981. He did not meet with US officials, the Washington Post reported on its website.

The visit was unrelated to Thursday's meeting in Geneva between an Iranian delegation and diplomats from the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia and Germany. The UN Security Council's five veto powers plus Germany are expected to press Iran to allow increased inspections of its nuclear facilities.

"It's a coincidence," State Department spokesman Phillip Crowley was quoted as saying by the Post. "But if it leads in a constructive direction, we welcome it." (dpa)