Envoy:

Iran Seeking Dialogue, Stability in West Asia

TEHRAN (defapress) – Iran's Ambassador to Moscow Mehdi Sanaei reiterated the country’s policy to help resolve regional crises through peaceful means and said the Islamic Republic is seeking to create stability in the West Asia region.

News ID: 67792

Date: 29 December 2017 - 12:57

Speaking at a meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov in Moscow on Thursday, Sanaei highlighted Tehran’s stance on the Yemeni and Syrian crises and said, “The Islamic Republic is after dialogue and creation of stability in West Asia.”

“No one will benefit from the continuation of these crises and conflicts,” he said, adding that if the problems are not resolved through consultations among regional countries, hegemonic powers will cast a greedy eye on the region.

The Russian diplomat, for his part, pointed to the sensitive situation of the Middle East and called for the continuation of consultations between Iran and Russia about various regional issues.

Bogdanov also said the Syrian National Dialogue Congress is planned to be held in Russia’s Sochi from January 29 to 30 and before the meetings, the guarantors of the observance of a ceasefire regime in Syria will hold talks on the Syrian issue.

Earlier last week, high-ranking diplomats from Iran, Russia, and Turkey held the eighth round of Syria peace talks brokered by the three countries in the Kazakh capital of Astana.

Representatives of the Syrian government, armed opposition groups, as well as delegations from the UN, Jordan and the US also participated in the talks.

Diplomatic efforts to end fighting in Syria gained momentum in 2017 with the announcement of the start of the ceasefire in the Arab country in early January.

The fourth round of Asabi talks in May produced a memorandum of understanding on de-escalation zones in Syria, sharply reducing fighting in the country.

During the sixth round of Astana talks in September, Iran, Russia and Turkey agreed on a deal to establish and patrol a de-escalation zone in Syria’s northern Idlib province. In early October, Turkey deployed tanks and military vehicles on its Syrian border, building up military presence in Idlib.

According to a report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the country’s pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond its borders.