Amir-Abdollahian: Iranian Advisors Continue Their Activities in Syria Uninterrupted

The Arab and African Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran denied reports from 'Western media' about the withdrawal of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces from Syria, emphasizing that Iran and Russia have 'no disagreements' and are 'seriously' assisting the Syrian army. According to the state news agency IRNA, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian stated on Sunday, December 22, that Iranian 'military advisors' continue their efforts 'uninterrupted' to 'combat terrorism.' He added, 'There are no disagreements between Iran and Russia regarding Syria, and the two countries are seriously helping the Syrian army in the fight against terrorism.' Amir-Abdollahian again assessed Russia's military operations in Syria as 'positive.' Bloomberg reported on Thursday, December 18, citing 'American and Western military officials,' that the Islamic Republic is 'withdrawing' its military forces from combat areas in Syria. These unnamed American and European military officials stated that this action by Iran creates a rift in the bilateral coalition between Iran and Russia regarding the Syrian war. The publication of these reports comes at a time when the number of Iranian forces killed in Syria has significantly increased following months of Russian military operations. According to Iranian media, most of these individuals were killed in the 'Ashura Operation,' which began at the start of the month of Muharram with the support of Russian air forces, conducted by the Syrian army and units of the IRGC and Hezbollah to reclaim the city of Aleppo in Syria. Meanwhile, on Saturday, the bodies of six Iranian forces killed in Syria were buried in various cities in Iran. Among them, according to IRNA, the body of Colonel Pasdar Setareh Mahmoudi Noorabadi was buried in Noorabad Mamassani County in Fars Province. On the same day, the bodies of Yahya Barati, Morteza Zare, and Sajjad Moradi were buried in Isfahan, the body of Mojtaba Abolghasemi in Dezful in Khuzestan Province, and the body of Habib Rouhi Chokami in Rasht. The Islamic Republic has declared the survival of Bashar al-Assad, the President of Syria, in power as its 'red line' while also stating that the crisis in the country has only a 'political solution.' Meanwhile, according to ISNA, Amir-Abdollahian, in a phone call with Stefan de Mistura, the UN Special Envoy for Syria, stated that the resolution of the Syrian crisis is 'solely dependent on a political solution' and 'Syrian-Syrian dialogues.' He reiterated that the list of Bashar al-Assad's opponents who believe in a 'political solution' and the list of 'terrorist groups' in Syria should be prepared by the United Nations. On Thursday, December 19, Amir-Abdollahian also protested against the holding of a meeting of Syrian opposition groups in Riyadh, stating that according to the Vienna-2 UN statement, the 'responsibility for identifying' Bashar al-Assad's opponents lies with the UN. Last month, foreign ministers from nearly 20 countries agreed at the Vienna 2 meeting on a deadline to begin dialogue between Bashar al-Assad's government and its opponents. This plan, which still lacks complete details, has set January 1, 2016, as the deadline for starting talks. According to this plan, negotiations must lead to the establishment of a 'credible, inclusive, and non-sectarian' transitional government within six months, which includes drafting a new constitution and holding elections under UN supervision within 18 months. Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated on December 12 that this international body is working to create dialogue between Bashar al-Assad and his opposition groups and to establish a ceasefire in Syria starting in early January of the coming year.