Zarif:

Iran Has No Military Bases in Syria

TEHRAN (defapress)- Iran has no military bases or military presence in Syria, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Monday.

News ID: 68751

Date: 19 February 2018 - 16:52

No, we do not have them [in Syria]," Zarif told when asked the relevant question.

According to the top official, Israel violated Syria's airspace and such "aggression" should be stopped.

"What happened in Syria on Saturday [February 10]? Israel violated Syria's airspace several times. It should be noted that Israel is permanently bombing Syria. And Syrian forces had managed to down an Israeli aircraft for the first time," Zarif said.

The statement comes amid Israeli and US officials' concern over alleged Iranian presence in Syria, a claim that Tehran has repeatedly refuted, however, admitting that it sends military advisors to help the Syrian government fight terrorists.

Speaking further, Zarif said that Iran and Saudi Arabia could work together to stabilize and reconstruct the region.

"There is nothing that prevents Iran and Saudi Arabia from working together for the improvement of the situation not only in Iraq, but also in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Bahrain and elsewhere. We can actually work together as a source of stability and development," Zarif said at the conference "Russia in the Middle East: playing on all fields" in Moscow.

According to Zarif, the issue of Syria’s Afrin could only be solved by the legitimate Syrian government.

"The problem in Afrin can best be resolved through lawful and legitimate sources that we have, through the Syrian government," Zarif said at the conference "Russia in the Middle East: playing on all fields" in Moscow.

Syria is currently facing a "new wave" of intervention by the United States, as Washington continues to pursue its geoeconomic interests, Zarif said Monday.

"Unfortunately we see a new wave of foreign intervention and occupation particularly by the US driven by an obsession. If we look at the attack by the US against the Syrian forces on February 7, we see some profiting, a short-sighted geoeconomic interest to capture territory," Zarif said at the conference.

The use of proxies by the United States is dangerous for the region, the politician added.

"We believe that the anxiety of our Turkish neighbors about the US designs in the region are understandable, but this is not the way to address those anxiety… Incursions in others' territories is not the way to address the problems," Zarif stressed.