Russia calls for Iran presence in Geneva II confab

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov underlines the necessity of Iran’s participation in the international conference on Syria known as the Geneva II conference.

We believe that the forum should definitely include those regional players that can play an influential role in resolving the crisis in Syria, Bogdanov said.

Iran has said that it is ready to take part in the planned Geneva II conference on the Syrian crisis “if invited without any preconditions.”

“If invited without any preconditions, Iran will participate in the [Geneva 2] conference in order to help resolve the Syrian crisis,” Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in a meeting with UN and Arab League special envoy for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, in New York in late September.

Brahimi and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon have also supported Iran’s participation in the international conference.

Bogdanov added that the Russian and American sides are working hard in cooperation with Brahimi to prepare for the international event.

“All agree that this forum should be held as soon as possible. The bloody armed conflict in Syria brings further casualties each day,” he said, stressing that the Syria crisis “has no military solution and can only be resolved through political and diplomatic means.”

On May 7, Russia and the US agreed in the Russian capital of Moscow to convene an international conference on Syria, which will serve as a follow-up to an earlier Geneva meeting held in June 2012.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest 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.

According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions displaced in the violence.