Ahmadinejad made the offer in a press conference at the presidential office in Tehran, held ahead of his fourth consecutive visit to New York later this month to attend the annual opening session of the United Nations.

"I have no plan to meet with U.S. politicians but as I have already declared, I am ready for debate with the U.S. presidential candidates at U.N. headquarters," Ahmadinejad said in remarks carried by state- run media.

"During my last visit to the United States, I announced that we are ready to meet with President George W. Bush. But he is at the end of his tenure and cannot leave any impact on the two sides' relations," he said.

Meanwhile, in an interview with Iran's Press TV, the president called for reform of the United Nations to transform it into a truly democratic institution.

He suggested that its headquarters should be moved from the United States to an impartial host country where leaders can freely go there to exchange their views.