Iran stresses Syrians’ rights in talks

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham has underlined the importance of upholding the Syrian nation’s rights in the upcoming international talks on the crisis in the Arab country.

On Sunday, Afkham pointed to Iran’s stance on the Syria conference, noting, “The Syrian people’s right to determine their own fate is an important issue, which has to be taken into consideration. If Iran can provide any assistance in this respect, it is prepared to do so.”

“The Islamic Republic of Iran, as a country that advocates a political settlement to the Damascus crisis, has expressed preparedness to devote all its efforts to resolve the crisis diplomatically, as it has taken effective measures in this regard,” she said.

Afkham noted that Iran will definitely participate in the conference if invited without any preconditions.

On December 20, UN-Arab League Special Representative for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi told media that Iran’s participation in the Syria conference had not been decided yet due to the US opposition.

The UN and Russia have called for Iran’s presence in the talks.

The conference is scheduled to be held in Switzerland in two parts. On January 22, the opening session of the event will be in the Swiss city of Montreux and then it will be moved to the UN office in Geneva on January 24.

Syria has been gripped by a deadly crisis since 2011. Reports indicate that the Western powers and their regional allies – especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey – are supporting the militants operating inside the country.