“Undermining Syria’s sovereignty will only increase the challenges the Syrian people are facing” Larijani added in a meeting with Syrian Ambassador to Tehran Adnan Mahmoud on Monday.
Noting that Tehran will always back Syria’s territorial integrity, the official said, “Iran will discuss the issue with other [regional] countries.”
Mahmoud, for his part, expressed gratitude to Iran for its support to Syria, saying that after the failure of the US’ plots in Syria, Turkey should also be prevented from establishing its safe zone in the country.
Turkish military forces launched an invasion of northeast Syria on October 9 in a bid to clear Kurdish militants of the so-called People’s Protection Units (YPG) from its border areas.
The Syrian government has condemned the offensive as an act of aggression.
Earlier today, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi expressed Tehran’s opposition to Turkey establishing military bases inside Syria, calling on Ankara to respect the Arab country's territorial integrity.
"The Turks can have bases on their own side of the border but establishing bases on Syrian soil is unacceptable and amounts to violating [the sovereignty] of a member of the United Nations," he said.
The official said Turkey's security concerns, while legitimate, should be resolved amicably and with full respect for Syria's sovereignty.
MNA/4752330