Deputy FM: Iran to Accept No Precondition for Attending Geneva 2
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs once again said the country will not accept any precondition for its presence in Geneva 2 peace conference on Syria.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran supports a political solution that emerges from a Syrian-Syrian deal and is opposed to any type of foreign intervention in that country’s affairs,” Hossein Amir Abdollahian said in his meeting with Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad here in Tehran.
Amir Abdollahian meanwhile referred to the threats posed by terrorism both in Syria and in the region, and stressed the need for comprehensive and collective campaign against it.
During the meeting, the Syrian deputy foreign minister stressed that the Iranian nation and government have always supported the Syrian nation, and played proactive and constructive role in resolving the regional crises.
Faisal al-Meqdad meanwhile announced the Syrian government’s readiness to participate in Geneva 2 conference, and said, “Eventually, it is the Syrian nation that would make the final decision about the country's political future."
The much delayed Geneva 2 conference on Syria is set to be held on January 22.
The conference would bring representatives from Syria's government and elements of the opposition to negotiate an end to the fighting that has raged on since March 2011.
Geneva 2 is the second sequel of Geneva 1 conference held in June 2012 in which international parties laid out a peace plan for Syria that calls for a transitional governing body. It left open the question of whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad must leave power.
The final communiqué issued on 30 June 2012, following the meeting of the so-called Action Group for Syria called for an immediate cessation of violence and the establishment of a transitional government that could include officials serving under President Bashar al-Assad and members of the opposition.
