Rouhani warns of Syria crisis spillover to other regional countries
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has warned against the spillover of the crisis in Syria to other regional countries, stressing the need for a political and non-military solution to the turmoil in the Arab country.
“If the current crisis in Syria is not defused, it may engulf other countries in the region as well,” Rouhani said in a meeting with Iraqi Vice President Khazir al-Khazai on Wednesday on the sidelines of the 68th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
He expressed concern over the situation in crisis-hit Syria, saying Iran and Iraq should cooperate on Syria to help find a political solution and put an end to the ongoing turmoil in the Arab country.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since March 2011.
A very large number of the militants operating inside Syria are reportedly foreign nationals. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies, especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.
The Iranian president also expressed regret over the incessant terrorist attacks in Iraq, saying Iran empathizes with Iraq as the Islamic Republic itself has been a victim of terrorism since the victory of the Islamic Revolution.
He underlined the need for cooperation among regional countries to fight extremism and terrorism.
Rouhani also described Iran-Iraq ties as amicable, saying there are more potentialities in both countries for the further development of relations in cultural, political and economic fields.
He also expressed gratitude to the Iraqi government for its closure of Camp Ashraf, where the members of the terrorist Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) resided, in Iraq’s eastern province of Diyala.
Stressing that the terrorist group had the blood of Iranians and Iraqis on its hands, the Iranian president expressed hope that the remaining MKO terrorists would leave the Iraqi soil shortly.
The MKO is listed as a terrorist organization by much of the international community and has committed numerous terrorist acts against Iranians and Iraqis.
In December 2011, the United Nations and Baghdad agreed to relocate some 3,000 MKO members from Camp New Iraq, formerly known as Camp Ashraf, to Camp Liberty.
The last group of MKO terrorists at Camp New Iraq was evicted by the Iraqi government on September 11 to join the other members of the terrorist group in the former US-held Camp Liberty, now called Camp Hurriya, near Baghdad International Airport where they are awaiting relocation to other countries.
Iraqi Vice President al-Khazai, for his part, said that Baghdad was keen to expand all-out ties with Tehran in all areas.
