Syria Optimistic About National Dialog In Tehran

Tehran, Nov 18, IRNA – Syrian Minister of State for National Reconciliation Ali Haidar said Sunday that he is optimistic about the "national dialogue" that will be held in the Iranian capital later today. Haidar, who is in Tehran to attend the meeting on the first national dialog between all Syrian groups, made the remarks while talking to IRNA. He hoped that Tehran meeting would take effective step towards resolving the Syrian crisis. The Syrian minister further described the event as a good will initiated by the Islamic Republic of Iran. He reiterated that Damascus expects other regional countries to also move towards settlement of the ongoing crisis. Unfortunately, he added, certain states interfere in the Syrian domestic affairs and support the opposition groups financially and militarily. The motto of the gathering is "No to Violence, Yes to Democracy." Over 200 Syrian politicians and representatives from the political parties in that country as well as President Bashar al-Assad's envoys will attend the Tehran meeting. The meeting will urge the influential international and regional bodies and countries to take another step towards resolving the 20-month Syrian crisis. Iran has been making great efforts to settle the Syrian crisis through peaceful solutions, holding dialog in particular./end