Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi traveled to Syria Wednesday on a historic first go to to the nation since civil struggle broke out over a decade in the past.
Raisi met Syria’s Bashar Assad in Damascus in a bid to spice up cooperation between the 2 allies, state media reported.
Tehran has been a most important backer of Assad’s authorities since an rebellion was a full-blown struggle in March 2011 and has performed an instrumental function in turning the tide in his favor.
Iran has despatched scores of navy advisers and hundreds of Iran-backed fighters from across the Middle East to battle on Assad’s aspect. With the assistance of Russia and Iran, Syrian authorities forces have managed massive elements of the nation in recent times.
In an interview with the pan-Arab tv channel al-Mayadeen, Raisi known as for reconstruction efforts and for refugees who fled the nation’s struggle to return to the nation.
Raisi, who’s main a high-ranking political and financial delegation throughout a two-day go to to Syria, was obtained on arrival at Damascus International Airport Wednesday by Syrian Economy Minister Samer al-Khalil.
“Syria’s government and people have gone through great hardship,” Syrian state media quoted Raisi telling Assad through the assembly. “Today, we can now say that you have overcome all these problems and were victorious despite the threats and sanctions imposed against you.”
He can be set to go to the Sayida Zeinab and Sayida Ruqayya shrines, each holy websites in Shiite Islam, in addition to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
The final Iranian president to go to Syria was President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2010.
The Iranian president’s go to comes as some Arab international locations, together with regional powerhouses Egypt and Saudi Arabia, have been opening as much as Assad, and their international ministers have visited Damascus in latest weeks. Syria’s international minister additionally visited the Saudi capital of Riyadh in April, the primary such go to for the reason that two international locations reduce relations in 2012.
In March, Iran and Saudi Arabia, a most important backer of Syrian opposition fighters, reached an settlement in China to reestablish diplomatic relations and reopen embassies after seven years of tensions.
Wind of reconciliation
The reconciliation between Iran and Saudi Arabia is prone to have optimistic results on regional states the place the 2 international locations fought proxy wars, together with Syria.
Syria was extensively shunned by Arab governments over Assad’s brutal crackdown on protesters and the breakdown in relations culminated with Syria being ousted from the Arab League in 2011. The battle has since killed practically half one million individuals and displaced half of Syria’s prewar inhabitants of 23 million.
“America and its allies failed on all fronts against the resistance, and could not achieve any of their goals,” Iran’s new ambassador to Syria Hossein Akbari informed Iran’s state news company Tuesday.
Like Syria, Iran is beneath Western sanctions, which alongside a long time of mismanagement, has plunged its nationwide forex to new lows. Months of anti-government protests did not unseat ruling clerics and return to the 2015 nuclear cope with world powers, which lifted sanctions in trade for restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program.
In 2015, Iran’s forex was buying and selling at 32,000 rials to the greenback when it signed a nuclear accord with world powers. In February it hit a report low of 600,000.
The Iranian president’s go to additionally comes per week after its Minister for Road and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash met Assad in Damascus, the place he delivered a message from the Iranian president supporting the enlargement of financial relations between the 2 international locations, based on Iran’s state news company.
Iran’s navy presence in Syria has been a serious concern for Israel, which has vowed to cease Iranian entrenchment alongside its northern border. Israel has carried out tons of of strikes on targets in government-controlled elements of Syria in recent times – however not often acknowledges them.
Since the start of 2023, Syrian officers have attributed a dozen strikes on Syrian territory to Israel, the newest of which got here early Tuesday killing one and placing the worldwide airport of the northern metropolis of Aleppo out of service.
Source: www.dailysabah.com
