Syrian Opposition: Europe Must Help Remove Iran from Syria

One of the leaders of the Syrian opposition stated on Thursday that the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA has paved the way for pressure on the Iranian government to end its military support for Bashar al-Assad's regime and withdraw from Syria. According to Reuters, these remarks were made by Nasr Hariri, a member of the opposition negotiating committee in Brussels. Simultaneously, Bashar al-Assad also stated on Thursday that American forces must leave Syria because the people of the Middle East are tired of foreign occupation. Hariri rejected Assad's statements, saying that Russia and Iran have fought on behalf of the regime in the Syrian war and helped it regain vast areas from rebels and the group known as the 'Islamic Caliphate'. Hariri mentioned that currently, about 100,000 Iranian or Iran-affiliated forces are in Syria. He further stated, 'Iran's role in Syria is becoming larger and larger, and our people are paying the price. Therefore, we support any international action to reduce Iran's influence in the region, especially in Syria.' He added, 'We cannot separate Iran's nuclear activities from its missile programs and its harmful behavior in the region.' Donald Trump decided to withdraw the U.S. from the nuclear agreement with Iran in May. Under this international agreement, Iran agreed to limit its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of sanctions. The European Union, which considers this agreement a crucial factor for international stability and security, is trying to maintain it. However, some European countries, like the U.S., oppose Iran's military interventions in the Middle East, including Syria and Yemen, while also calling for limitations on Iran's missile activities. Reuters adds that Nasr Hariri discussed these issues with Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief, on Thursday. Hariri stated, 'As long as Iran and its affiliated militias are in Syria, a political solution cannot be achieved. As long as the foreign partners of Bashar al-Assad's regime are in Syria, a solution cannot be reached. We are looking for ways to force Iran to leave Syria.' Given the support of Russia and Iran for Bashar al-Assad's regime, his position in the Syrian war has now been consolidated. During the seven-year civil war in Syria, about half a million people have been killed, six million have been displaced internally, and about five million have fled to other countries, including Europe. However, Hariri stated that even three years of extensive Russian military intervention has not been able to bring the regime to a decisive victory, and if Russian forces withdraw, the Assad regime could still be overthrown. Hariri added, 'Rumors that the regime has achieved victory are not true. Under the current conditions, the regime cannot claim a stable victory.' He also mentioned that if Russia wants to exit the Syrian civil war, it must take international peace negotiations seriously. The European Union is seriously supporting the Syrian peace negotiations mediated by the United Nations. However, due to U.S. and Russian support for the warring parties in the Syrian civil war, these negotiations have not made significant progress so far.