Official Renews Iran’s Objection to Preconditions for Syria Conference
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - If the Islamic Republic is to attend the upcoming Geneva 2 peace conference on Syria, it will certainly participate without any preconditions, a senior Iranian diplomat underlined
Director General of the Iranian Foreign Ministry's Office for Middle East and North Africa Reza Ameri on Monday once again dismissed any preconditions for Iran’s attendance at the long-awaited Geneva 2 conference, affirming that Tehran’s participation “can be a great help to the furtherance of the political and peaceful solution” to the Syrian crisis.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran is among the effective countries that has always been a part of the solution to the Syrian crisis,” Ameri told reporters, here in Tehran on Monday.
He also described the upcoming conference as an event that could have the potential for triggering a political process to end the crisis in Syria, and added, “The Geneva 2 (conference) would be proper, provided that all the influential sides in the crisis can present their ideas and views in the form of well-intentioned consultation.”
Earlier in the day, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham lashed out at the US secretary of state for his recent remarks on Iran’s possible role on the sidelines of the upcoming conference, saying Tehran only accepts proposals that uphold the country's dignity.
“Tehran only accepts proposals that would comply with the Islamic Republic of Iran's honor,” she said on Monday, reacting to the US Secretary of State John Kerry’s comments on how Tehran should attend at the upcoming peace conference on Syria.
Kerry had announced on Sunday that Iran could be helpful even on the sidelines of a second round of Geneva talks on Syria.
The much delayed Geneva 2 conference on Syria is set to be held on January 22.
The conference would bring representatives from Syria's government and elements of the opposition to negotiate an end to the fighting that has raged on since March 2011.
Geneva 2 is the second sequel of Geneva 1 conference held in June 2012 in which international parties laid out a peace plan for Syria that calls for a transitional governing body. It left open the question of whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad must leave power.
The final communiqué issued on 30 June 2012, following the meeting of the so-called Action Group for Syria called for an immediate cessation of violence and the establishment of a transitional government that could include officials serving under President Bashar al-Assad and members of the opposition.
