USA acts to open dialogue with Iran about Syria, Yemen crises

Iran believes that the United States is the one that started the crisis by creating and then backing terrorist groups such as the ISIL and other Takfiri groups, and therefore Washington is not fit to be a focal point in the Syria talks, Esmail Kosari, member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament, told Trend September 26.

Zarif will also met with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry later on Saturday. “Therefore, we can offer our views and solutions to end crisis in Syria and Yemen or any other regional issue”, the Iranian official told Reuters. “There are opportunities this week, through these discussions, to make a few progress”.

The news comes following reports that Russian Federation, a staunch ally with Iran, is building up a military presence in Syria.

Zarif said his primary focus in the talks with Kerry would be implementation of a deal that curbs Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.

Zarif also mentioned the “the unfortunate developments in Saudi Arabia over the last week”, which he said need to be addressed in the “proper worldwide forum”. She said the subject of Syria had been raised informally on the sidelines of the nuclear negotiations that ended in July but never in a structured way.

The nuclear deal with Iran doesn’t appear to be the White House’s only move at diplomacy with the Middle Eastern nation.

The United States has been adamant that Assad must be removed from office, however Kerry has said that Assad must step down, but not necessarily immediately upon reaching a settlement to end the country’s civil war.

“If they’re siding with Assad, it’s not so that they can kill IS, it’s so they can fight against the anti-regime forces“, Hodges said.

At the meeting, the Iranian minister briefed Jaafari on the latest efforts to pursue the recent human tragedy happened in holy Mecca, in which almost 2000 pilgrims were dead, among them 169 Iranian nationals.

Early past year, the Obama administration blocked Iran from attending a peace conference on Syria, saying that its paramilitary Quds Force was a belligerent in the conflict, and that Tehran did not accept as a goal the formation of a transitional administration with the “mutual consent” of the opposition and the Assad government.

Iran is “a powerful and effective country in the region, this is undeniable”, Rouhani said.

The European Union’s diplomatic chief and Iran’s foreign minister in New York on Saturday to discuss the war in Syria, ahead of a United Nations push for peace talks. He denied any knowledge of the use of “barrel bombs” against civilians in Syria’s civil war, but suggested that Damascus was entitled to use whatever it has at its disposal to counter terrorists.