Sweden underlines Iran role in ending Syria crisis
The Swedish ambassador to Syria and Lebanon has hoped for political settlement of the Syrian crisis, and highlighted the important role of all influential parties in the Middle East, particularly Iran, to resolve the conflict.
In a meeting with Iran’s Ambassador to Lebanon Ghazanfar Roknabadi in Beirut on Monday, Niklas Kebbon called for continued political efforts to work out a solution to the Syrian conflict.
He also underlined the need for further humanitarian assistance and support to Syrian refugees and all those affected by foreign-sponsored militancy in Syria.
Roknabadi, for his part, pointed to the inhumane and vicious acts being carried out by Takfiri groups in the Middle East, and stated that cessation of foreign financial and arms support to terrorist groups operating inside Syria is the first step to find a real political solution to the Syrian crisis.
On April 3, Italian Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini underscored the need for Iran’s participation in any effort aimed at settling the crisis in Syria.
On March 15, the UN secretary general highlighted Iran’s role in resolving the Syrian crisis, and urged Tehran to use its influence on Damascus to help revive the talks aimed at ending the conflict in the Arab country.
“Iran is one of the important regional countries who can play an important role, including impressing upon the Syrian authorities to come to the Geneva conference in a more constructive way,” Ban Ki-Moon said after an informal meeting of the UN General Assembly attended by UN-Arab League Special Representative for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi.
The second round of the talks between delegations representing the Syrian government and the foreign-backed opposition in Geneva hit a deadlock in mid-February with both sides sticking to their positions.
The Syrian delegation said fighting terrorism should be the top priority, but the opposition insisted that the formation of a transitional government and resignation of President Bashar al-Assad must come first.
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since 2011. Some sources say over 150,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the violence fueled by Western-backed militants.
Iran has said that it will engage in any diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the crisis in Syria. However, due to opposition by the US and the so-called Syrian opposition, Tehran has been excluded from the two rounds of international talks on the crisis.
