Bahram Ghasemi once again highlighted the need for all countries to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, adding “although combating terrorism and making efforts to maintain stability and security in the region is an unchangeable and significant principle in the foreign policy of all peace-seeking countries in the region, this fact cannot and must not be used to justify the violation of territorial integrity and a disregard for the sovereignty of another country by conducting military operations there without prior coordination with its central government.”
Ghasemi went on to add, “in fighting terrorism, resorting to ways by which the political sovereignty and legitimate authority of the central government could be overshadowed and undermined, is completely unacceptable.”
The Iranian diplomat noted that the continued presence of Turkish military forces in Syria would further complicate the situation in the region, adding “expansion of the scope of the conflict in northern Syria will lead to the killing of even more civilians and innocent people, and it is imperative that the Turkish Army should immediately stop its military operations there.”
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