Iran in contact with region states to prevent spread of Syrian crisis
By Sara Rajabova
Iran is in constant contact with different regional states to prevent the harmful aftermaths of some regional developments from spreading to the entire region, the Iranian foreign minister said on May 8 following his trip to Syria and Jordan.
Ali Akbar Salehi said his recent tour of the regional states was aimed at preventing spread of the Syrian crisis into the region, and added that the regional countries share Tehran's views on Syria, Fars news agency reported.
Salehi also said the situation in Syria is 'very good,' as the Syrian army now has control over most parts of the Arab country.
"We are hopeful about the future of Syria. Of course, this does not mean that everything will soon be over, but the Syrian army has resisted pretty well so far," Salehi said.
He noted that the region is currently witnessing momentous developments and therefore, Iran must be in constant contact with the regional countries in order to prevent any incident, the inevitable consequences of which could overwhelm the entire region.
The Iranian foreign minister arrived in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Tuesday, and held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to discuss the latest developments in the crisis-hit country.
Referring to his meeting with Assad, Salehi said the latest regional developments were discussed in the meeting where "good decisions" were also made.
During his meeting with Syrian President, he also said that the crisis in Syria can only be resolved through national dialogue, condemning the idea of foreign intervention in Syria.
Salehi visited Syria at the invitation of Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem and is scheduled to hold key talks with senior Syrian officials.
Earlier in the day, Iranian Foreign Minister met with top Jordanian officials including his Jordanian counterpart, Yasser Judeh, Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour and King Abdullah II.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011. Meanwhile, the deadly clashes between government forces and rebels in Syria continue to claim the lives of thousands of innocent people every day.
More than 70,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed, and some 3 million displaced since the uprising against Assad began in March 2011.