Iran FM Urges Settlement Of Syrian Crisis Through Diplomacy

New York, Sept 26, IRNA – Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi called for a diplomatic solution to the Syrian crisis. In an exclusive interview with IRNA, he said Iran favored a political solution to the Syrian crisis and welcomed dialogue between the Syrian government and the opposition groups. Salehi, who is here to take part in the 67th United Nations General Assembly, also said that he will have about 40 meetings with senior officials of other participating countries. He also pointed to his meetings with his German and Swedish counterparts today and said he had had numerous meetings with foreign ministers of other countries including those from Europe and discussed bilateral and international issues with them. He referred to the Syrian crisis as one of the major issues discussed during these meetings and said Iran enjoyed a special status in resolving the crisis given its presidency over the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and being a member of the quadripartite contact group on Syria. Iran is doing its best to end clashes and killing in Syria and is cooperating with the United Nations Especial Envoy for Syrian crisis Lakhdar Brahimi to achieve the goal. The Iranian foreign minister further stressed on a wholly Syrian solution to the crisis and dismissed foreign interventions in the country./end