In regard to the Western coalition against ISIL, Mohammad Ali Jafari said, “as Iran’s Leader expressed yesterday, this coalition is more of a show. The US has finally felt threatened by expansion of this terrorist group and fears that it would affect them in the near future; hence, forming this coalition against ISIL.”
As to whether Iran would attend this summit or not, Ali Jafari asserted, “Since this coalition revolves mostly around the US, Iran would never attend it, even if it were invited to.”
“Iran has been fighting against terrorist groups long before the formation of ISIL,” he maintained, “I do not think this coalition will produce any results, seeing as it has been formed based solely on the Western countries’ objectives. As to whether their objective is the complete removal of terrorist groups including ISIL, I have my doubts about it.”
In regard to American military troops in Erbil, Iraq and if this poses a threat to Iran, Jafari maintained, “this decision poses no threat to Iran, and we find direct threats quite unlikely. This measure has been taken to support the Kurds in the north of Iraq and that is why the troops are situated in Erbil.”
As to Iran’s military power given the related reports by Pentagon, he explained, “Iran’s military power must be assessed differently from other countries’. They rely on weapons and military equipment, but we on faith, inspiration, and software measures in defense and tactics, and only very little on weapons.”
Concerning Syria developments and the US attempts at mobilizing rebel groups against Syrian government and people, he stated, “Iran’s reaction to the Syrian issue has only a political dimension, and we do not intervene directly or military-wise. We will, however, continue our support of the Syrian government and condemn the US attempts at mobilizing the rebel groups.”
In regard to the Amerli Operations and whether Iran’s military troops were involved, he said, “this successful operation was carried out by Iraqi defense forces and army. Iran’s role was consultative, and there was no need for our troops to get involved.”
As to his evaluation of the Quds Force performance, he said, “the Qods Force is focused on abroad to help Islamic movements against hegemonies. So far, they have performed quite well in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq.”
MS/HRGH
MNA
END