Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Sunday that the United States has never been seeking to root out terrorism in the Middle East region, Press TV reported.

The United States is making efforts to preserve some terror groups in the Middle East to advance with its goals, Khamenei was quoted as saying.

Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting with the visiting Head of the National Iraqi Alliance, Ammar Hakim, and his accompanying delegation in Tehran on Sunday.

"In (Iraq's) Mosul and also in Syria, the United States is not in favor of the total defeat of Takfiri terrorists," Khamenei added.

Khamenei advised the National Iraqi Alliance not to trust the United States, warning that Washington has always been against powerful Muslim countries such as Iraq.

source: Xinhua