Iran, Turkey to Find Joint Solution to Syria Crisis: Diplomat

“Tehran and Ankara will succeed to settle the Syrian crisis politically in joint effort sooner or later,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian said in a meeting with Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Umit Yalcin.

The Iranian diplomat also hailed the “strategic” relations between Tehran and Ankara and highlighted Turkey’s role in the region, stressing the necessity for consultation between the two Muslim neighbors on different regional issues.

“The region has undergone such developments that Tehran and Ankara can play prominent political role in resolving the crises, and we are ready to turn the consultations in this field into practical cooperation,” he noted.

Amir Abdollahian reiterated the need for a “democratic solution” to the Syrian turmoil that excludes any military approach.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran favors inclusive national dialogue and democratic methods in Syria and is opposed to measures of the foreign players in arming moderate opposition,” he added.

For his part, the Turkish diplomat said Iran and Turkey share views on a better prospect for the regional nations and the need for maintenance of territorial integrity and security in Syria and Iraq.

Any initiative or solution to settle the problems of Iraq and Syria will fail without Iran, Yalcin noted.

Tehran has always insisted that a political approach would be the sole solution to the three-year-old crisis in Syria, saying that campaign against terrorism should be top on the agenda.

Syria's war that started in 2011 has killed close to 200,000 people and forced more than 3 million refugees to flee the country, according to the United Nations.