Iranian President Hassan Rohani reiterated that there is no military solution to the crisis in Syria

Iranian President Hassan Rohani reiterated that there is no military solution to the crisis in Syria, reaffirming his country’s welcome Syria’s accession to the Chemical Weapons Convention.

Addressing the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Rohani warned that the greatest threat to the region is the danger of chemical weapons falling into the hands of the extremist terrorist groups, adding that this issue should be taken into account in any plan regarding these weapons.

“The humanitarian tragedy in Syria is a painful example of the catastrophic spread of violence and extremism
in the region,” the Iranian President said, asserting that there has been an active support to the extremist groups in Syria since the beginning of the crisis with some international and regional sides having sought to militarize the situation in Syria through sending weapons and entering intelligence operatives into this country.

“We stressed that there is no military solution to the crisis in Syria,” said Rohani, slamming the attempts seeking expansionist goals and change of regional balance by proxy under the cover of the humanitarian discourse.

“Therefore, the international community’s common goal should be that of immediately ending the killing of innocents,” he added, cautioning that the threat of using force will only lead to aggravating the situation and the crisis in the region.

He called upon the US President Barack Obama not to seek short-sighted interests and not to yield to the warmongering pressure groups, affirming that achieving peace and democracy and guaranteeing the legitimate rights of all countries cannot be achieved through militaristic approach.

Rohani criticized the West’s policy of imposing sanctions on some countries, saying the sanctions only cause wars and the suffering of humanity and their negative impacts are not limited to the intended victims as they extend to the economy and livelihood of other countries and societies.