Iran Urges Egypt to Hold Quadrilateral Meeting on Syria Soon

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi called on Egypt to arrange an imminent meeting of the quadrilateral contact group on Syria.

The Iranian foreign minister also announced Iran’s readiness to host or attend the meeting in any country and at any level, the al-Mayadeen news website reported.

“Egyptian President Mohammad Mursi’s initiative for forming a quadrilateral committee comprising Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey for resolving the Syrian crisis is very important and effective due to Egypt’s status in the Muslim world and among Arab states,” Salehi said.

Last month, a senior Iranian diplomat announced that Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are slated to hold a meeting on Syria in the very near future in a bid to discuss and help soothe the crisis in the Muslim country.

“Egyptian authorities will announce the date of the quadrilateral meeting between Tehran, Cairo, Riyadh and Ankara,” Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian said in April.

The Iranian deputy foreign minister pointed to the mediating role of Iran and Egypt in the Syrian crisis, and said, “Egyptian President Mohammad Mursi’s initiative for the settlement of the crisis (in Syria) was discussed during my recent visit to Cairo.

Following a quadrilateral ministerial meeting on Syria in Cairo in September, 2012, Salehi had said that members of the Contact Group on Syria share identical views about finding a solution to the current crisis in Syria.

“The common ground between us is more than our differences,” he said at a joint press conference with his Turkish and Egyptian counterparts.

The Iranian minister emphasized that there must be a Syrian solution and not one imposed from the outside.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country.

The US and its western and regional allies have long sought to topple Assad and his ruling system. Media reports said that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.

The US daily, Washington Post, reported in May that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups battling the President Bashar al-Assad’s government have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.

The newspaper, quoting opposition activists and US and foreign officials, reported that Obama administration officials emphasized the administration has expanded contacts with opposition military forces to provide the Persian Gulf nations with assessments of rebel credibility and command-and-control infrastructure.

Opposition activists who several months ago said the rebels were running out of ammunition said in May that the flow of weapons – most bought on the black market in neighboring countries or from elements of the Syrian military in the past – has significantly increased after a decision by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Persian Gulf states to provide millions of dollars in funding each month.