Iran, Russia Discuss Syria Crisis, Blame US for Propping Up Terrorists
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani and Russian president’s special envoy on Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, discussed the latest development in Syria, with the Iranian side warning against foreign plots to revitalize terrorist groups under new names.
In a meeting in Tehran on Monday evening, Shamkhani denounced the West’s “media and political” show aimed at covering up its paradoxical policies on the fight against terrorism in Syria.
Rejecting any foreign military intervention in Syria without the Damascus government’s consent, the top Iranian official emphasized the need for concerted action against plans by the countries that are militarily interfering in Syria or backing terrorist groups there in order to revive terrorists under new names and impose their will on Syrian people.
He also called for closer interaction among Iran, Russia and Syria in combatting terrorism, and lashed out at the US and its allies for opposing an initiative for the evacuation of terrorists from Aleppo although the terrorist groups are the biggest obstacle to humanitarian aid deliveries to the Syrian city.
Shamkhani also slammed Washington’s muted response to the Saudi-led massacre of Yemenis with modern American weapons as a brazen sign of US disregard for human rights and lives.
For his part, Lavrentiev gave a detailed report on obstructive policies of the US and its Western and regional allies on the battle against terrorism in Syria and delivering humanitarian aid to civilians in terrorist-held Aleppo.
The Russian representative also described Tehran-Moscow cooperation against terrorism as “sustainable, strategic and inclusive,” saying the main reason behind the collapse of a recent ceasefire plan in Aleppo was the failure on the part of the US to delineate armed rebels and members of al-Nusra Front terrorist group.
Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011 with various terrorist groups, including Daesh, currently controlling parts of it.
According to a report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the country’s pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond its borders.
In the meantime, Iran and Russia have remained close allies of Syria and support its legitimate government in the face of foreign-backed militancy.
Tehran insists that the Syrian nation is the only side that has the right to shape the future of its own country, rejecting foreign intervention with the use of force.
