Iran can help settle Turkey-Syria crisis: Diplomat
Tehran: Iran has the capacity to help settle the crisis between Turkey and Syria, Ramin Mehmanparast, an Iranian diplomat, said with reference to recent conflicts and military operation of Turkey in the northern Syria.
On Wednesday, Turkey launched a military offensive in northern Syria to eliminate the Kurdish forces of the Syrian Democratic Forces and its umbrella of the People’s Protection Units, which are both deemed by Ankara as terrorists, reports Xinhua news agency.
Turkey’s move was followed by condemnation of European and regional states.
Iran also frowned on Turkey’s operation, saying it “understands Turkey’s security concerns, however, it believes that the military action would not diminish Turkey’s security concerns but would cause material and humanitarian damage”.
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani echoed Syrian government’s position on Wednesday by stating that it was Syria’s army which should provide security in the borders of the Arab state including in Syria’s northern borders with Turkey.
“We should provide all the grounds for the presence of Syria’s army in these regions, and all other countries should help,” he noted.
Mehmanparast, in an article published in Tehran, said “from the perspective of Iran, intervention of foreign forces in Syria are condemned, and Iran has emphasized that all the foreigners should leave Syria”.
Accordingly, the recent decision of US President Donald Trump to withdraw American forces from Syria’s northern borders conforms to Iran’s position, he noted.
Tehran has said that Washington was partly to blame for the situation in Syria that has led to Turkey’s military action.
Mehmanparast, the current Iranian ambassador to Poland and Lithuania, stated that Iran was an influential country in the region and can use its diplomatic capacity to help resolve the regional issues peacefully.
“Iran has close and amicable relations with both Turkish and Syrian governments… Iran is ready to help settle issues between Ankara and Damascus.”
The condition for Iran’s mediation to solve these issues requires “a will and readiness in both Damascus and Ankara”, Mehmanparast concluded.