Only dialog can solve Syria crisis: Zarif

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has once again reaffirmed the Islamic Republic’s principled stance on resolving the crisis in Syria only through political means.

“The Syrian crisis has no solution but dialog,” Zarif said in a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu on Friday.

“After a long time, all sides concluded that a military solution will not only fail to settle the problems in Syria but will fan the flames of sectarian rifts and extremism in the region; and the expansion of extremism is a danger to all regional countries and the world,” the Iranian foreign minister said.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies, especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are supporting the militants operating inside the country.

The US threatened to attack Syria after foreign-backed opposition forces accused the government of President Bashar al-Assad of having launched a chemical attack on militant stronghold in the suburbs of Damascus on August 21.

Damascus denied the accusation, saying the attack was carried out by the militants themselves as a false flag operation.

Zarif further touched upon Iran-Turkey ties in various political and economic fields and said the two countries enjoy great capacities for strengthening bilateral cooperation.

He added that senior Iranian and Turkish officials have a “positive outlook” on the improvement of bilateral cooperation in all sectors, which he described as important ground for an all-out development of bilateral ties.

The Turkish foreign minister, for his part, assessed as “important” the bilateral cooperation between Iran and Turkey in the different fields of economy, energy and transportation.

Davutoglu stressed the importance of continued visits by delegations from Iran and Turkey to discuss leading regional developments, including the issue of Syria.