Iranian FM, Egyptian president discuss Syria

TEHRAN,Jan.13(MNA) – Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi discussed the Syrian crisis with Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi during a meeting in Cairo on Thursday, which marked the first official visit by a high-ranking Iranian official to the Arab country since the ouster of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak in February 2011. “The resolution of the Syrian issue is possible only through dialogue, otherwise the entire region will be negatively affected by it,” Salehi stated. Commenting on bilateral ties, he said that Iran and Egypt can complement each other well, adding, “The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to share its more than 30 years of experience with the Egyptian people.” He also conveyed the warm greetings of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Morsi and invited him on behalf of Ahmadinejad to pay a visit to Iran. Morsi said that Muslim countries should make efforts to end the violence in Syria. On the relationship between Tehran and Cairo, he stated that Egypt regards cooperation with Iran as “important”, adding that he will visit Iran at a suitable opportunity. During the meeting, Morsi invited the Iranian president to attend a summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which is scheduled to be held in Cairo from February 2 to 7. Salehi also met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr in the Egyptian capital on Thursday. The two officials emphasized the necessity of bilateral cooperation and consultation in various areas. Brahimi says Iran’s influence should be used to serve regional interests In addition, Salehi held a meeting with Lakhdar Brahimi, the UN-Arab League joint special envoy on Syria, on Thursday, during which Iran’s proposals and the new plan put forward by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were discussed. In its initiative, Iran has called for a halt to all acts of violence in Syria, the distribution of humanitarian aid among the people affected by the crisis which requires the lifting of economic sanctions against the country, national dialogue followed by the establishment of a transitional government agreed by all sides and free parliamentary and presidential elections, release of those arrested for peaceful political activities and a fair trial of criminals, an end to the campaign of misinformation against Syria, and the establishment of a committee to assess the damage to the country’s infrastructure. And the plan presented by Assad calls for the convening of a national reconciliation conference and the formation of a broad-based representative government that would then oversee new elections, the drafting of a new constitution, and a general amnesty. During his meeting with Brahimi in Cairo, Salehi said that Iran is ready to make every effort to help resolve the crisis in the Arab country. He also thanked Brahimi for the efforts he has made to improve the situation in Syria, adding that the crisis should be resolved through a Syrian-Syrian solution. The UN-Arab League special envoy described Iran as an “important” regional country, saying that Iran’s influence can be used to serve the interests of the region. In addition, Salehi held a meeting with Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi on Thursday. Both sides exchanged views on a range of issues, including the Palestinian issue and the Syrian crisis. He also met with the grand sheikh of Al-Azhar, Ahmed el-Tayyeb, on Friday.