Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber has underscored the “strategic and amicable” relations between the Islamic Republic and Syria.
The Iranian official said Tehran is determined to expand economic cooperation with Damascus.
“The Iranian government and nation attach profound significance to Syria, and consider the nation’s stability, independence, welfare and prosperity as among their priorities,” Mokhber said in a meeting with visiting Syrian Prime Minister Hussein Arnous in Tehran on Saturday.
The senior Iranian official also mentioned the ongoing Israeli military onslaught on the Gaza Strip. Mokhber said the international community is witnessing circumstances that are matchless in history.
The crimes being perpetrated in Gaza against the Palestinian women and children amount to crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes, Mokhber said, criticizing international institutions for their failure to adopt an effective measure in the face of such cruelties.
“The burning rage of the United States and the Zionist regime stems from the fact that their grandeur fell apart in light of Operation Al-Aqsa Storm [launched on October 7]. They were under delusion about their might, and had propagated such illusions worldwide,” the Iranian vice president said.
Mokhber said Washington and the Tel Aviv regime failed miserably to attain any of their set objectives in Gaza, emphasizing that the Axis of Resistance has grown to be strong and powerful, and rendered enemies unable to confront it.
“Just like Daesh terrorist group, which could not achieve its goals in Syria due to the heroic resistance of the country’s government and nation, the Zionist regime will not be able to dominate the region because of the strong steadfastness of the people of Gaza.”
He expressed hope that enemies as well as their military forces and proxies would pull out of West Asia completely.
For his part, Arnous said the Syrian government and nation will never forget Iran’s unconditional support and honorable positions vis-à-vis Syria.
“Iran and Syria have always come under pressure from the global arrogance, the United States and certain Western states because they have been safeguarding their independence. Western countries have been putting pressure on Syria as it is one of the main pillars of the Axis of Resistance.”
“Nonetheless I give you assurances that Syria will not alter its stance and will continue to tread the path of resistance,” the Syrian prime minister said.
Turning to the relentless Israeli air and ground strikes on Gaza, Arnous described the scale of the regime’s aggression as “bizarre and out of the ordinary.”
“It is eccentric that such atrocities are taking place just before the world public opinion. It seems as if some parties are willing to wipe Gaza off the world map. We hope the Axis of Resistance would foil all these conspiracies.”
Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7 after the territory’s Palestinian resistance movements waged Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity in response to the regime’s decades-long campaign of bloodletting and devastation against the Palestinians.
Israel has killed at least 17, 177 people, most of them women and children, in Gaza since. More than 46,000 people have been wounded as well.
Iran, Syria ink several cooperation documents
Later on Saturday, Iran and Syria signed six cooperation agreements, including a deal on free trade and memoranda of understanding pertaining to tourism, media, sports, museums and libraries.
The two sides also agreed to launch shipping routes and promote transportation between Tehran and Damascus.
