The comment was made by Ali Akbar Velayati, who is also Leader's senior adviser on international affairs, in a Tuesday meeting in Tehran with Lars Bäckström, Deputy Facilitator of Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Helsinki.
During the meeting held at the Strategic Research Center of Expediency Council, the two sides conferred on regional issues and bilateral cooperation.
Bäckström referred to the position and significance of Iran in the regional and international scenes, calling on Velayati to exchange views on the current situation in the region.
The Iranian senior official, for his part, discussed the presence of Takfiri terrorists in the Middle East, saying “regrettably, the support of certain western countries and their regional allies has caused terrorism and extremism to spread further in the region, and the only way to counter terrorism is to cut off support for anyone who in recent years has committed crimes against innocent nations.”
Velayati further reiterated the Islamic Republic’s position on Syrian crisis, saying “any decision in regard to the future of people and government of Syria, Iraq or any other country gripped with terrorism, must be taken by their own people and foreign intervention will only intensify regional turmoil.”
He went on to stress that no military approach is conceivable for the settlement of these issues.
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