Zarif: Iran opposes US presence in Astana conference on Syria

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News ID: 7293
Iran » Iran
Publish Date: 20:50 - 17 January 2017
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif reiterated that the country is against the US presence in Astana conference on Syria.
Zarif: Iran opposes US presence in Astana conference on Syria"We are against the US presence in Astana conference and we have not invited them,” he said.

Early January, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said the country has vowed all-out efforts to help restore peace to violence-torn Syria, adding the Islamic Republic will attend the upcoming crisis resolution talks between Damascus and the opposition in Astana, Kazakhstan, "without any preconditions.”

Late last month, the Syrian government and foreign-backed militant groups reached a nationwide ceasefire deal, brokered by Russia and Turkey. The two sides also agreed to attend intra-Syrian talks in Astana.

The deal followed an earlier truce agreement, mediated by Moscow and Ankara, in Aleppo,
which paved the way for the evacuation of remaining civilians and armed men and put back the northwestern city under Damascus control after years of fighting.

The diplomatic achievements came after trilateral Syria meetings among Iran, Russia and Turkey in Moscow, in which the three sides stressed the need for an all-Syria truce and expressed "readiness to facilitate and become the guarantors” of the agreement, which was still under negotiations at the time.

Qassemi further said Iran has "no preconditions” for attending the negotiations aimed at resolving more than five years of deadly violence in Syria.

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