TEHERAN - One day before President Mohammad Khatami's landmark visit to Kabul his Afghan counterpart President Hamid Karzai stressed the importance ties between the two neighboring states.

"For us, relations with Iran are vital, and Khatami's visit will be a turning point in our relationship," Kharzai told the Iranian TV on the eve of Khatami's visit.

"We appreciate Iran's aid for the reconstruction of our country, and its role for peace and stability in the region," he added.

Khatami heads to Kabul Tuesday in a bid to cement ties with a government of which it was a key backer when it opposed the Taleban.

Khatami will be accompanied by a high-ranking political, economic and cultural delegation for the visit, the first by an Iranian head of state since the Taleban's overthrow in November last year, triggered by the fundamentalist group's role as host to the Islamist Al-Qaeda "terror" network.

An Iranian government spokesman said Sunday the talks between Khatami and his afghan counterpart, Hamid Kharzai, would focus on security issues and the illegal drug trade along the nations' shared 900-kilometer (560-mile) border.

Iran has been on Afghan side on difficult days. It has hosted more than two million Afghan refugees for over twenty years. Despite all the economic woes and massive unemployment Iran has allowed the Afghan refugees to move freely in the country and seek jobs.

Iran also pledged the greatest financial aid to Afghanistan in the Tokyo Conference and until this date it has been among those least countries which have fulfilled its commitments in this regard.

Meanwhile, reports receiving from Afghanistan suggest that the Afghan nation, particularly Kabul residents, along with the interim government officials, are busy arranging for a broad welcome ceremony for President Khatami.

The Kabul Municipality has been mobilizing all its forces within the past two days, commissioning them to clean up the city, while there are reports on the people's voluntary cooperation with the municipality forces in this regard. A Kabul citizen who was helping on the process of cleaning up the city told IRNA when asked about the reason why he was taking the trouble under the hot summer sun, said, "that is because we are preparing our capital to welcome a very special, dear guest." He added: "I am worried and anxious lest the Kabul government's financial capabilities would not enable Afghanistan to receive the Iranian president and his accompanying delegation as prestigiously as possible."

Introducing himself as Seddiq Ahamd, this Kabul citizen of Afghanistan said that since he has heard that President Khatami likes smiles, he too, is ready to welcome him with a broad smile.

Pictures of Iranian and Afghan personalities are decorating the path from Kabul Airport to the presidential palace, and the two countries' flags, as well as scores of placards reading "Mr.

Khatami, You Are Welcome!" are hosted along Kabul's main streets.

According to other reports, many groups of people have announced their readiness to participate in welcome ceremony, but due to security reasons, their requests have been rejected by the city's security officials.

A top Afghan security official told IRNA that Afghanistan's general conditions are still not quite back to normal, and therefore, despite the public interest in attending the path of President Khatami's arrival, the people have been requested not to do so.

He all the same assured IRNA that the Afghan government is quite capable of insuring the full security of the city and there should be no worries about the president's security, thanks to the severe measures adopted in that regard.

The security official who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the Kabul police force, along with the security forces of Afghanistan are quite experienced in their job.