President Hassan Rouhani has denounced a new US plan to set up a Kurdish-led force near Syria's border with Turkey, saying it constitutes a breach of international law and a plot against the Arab country's sovereignty.
Rouhani made the remarks in a meeting with Speaker of People's Council of Syria Hammouda Youssef Sabbagh in Tehran on Tuesday on the sidelines of the summit of the Parliamentary Union of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Member States, Press TV reported.
"The plot that the Americans have recently hatched for Syria is against international law and a plot against the territorial integrity and security of Syria and the region," Rouhani said.
The US announced on Sunday that it will work, along with a coalition of its allies purportedly fighting the self-styled Islamic State terror group, with US-backed militants of the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces to set up a new 30,000-strong "border security" force.
The force would operate along the Turkish border with Iraq and within Syria along the Euphrates River.
The president said the fight against terrorists and foreign intervention must be continued in Syria and called for adopting measures to help the Syrian refugees return to their homeland as soon as possible.
He added that the reconstruction of the war-stricken country should start and noted that the Islamic Republic would stand by the Syrian government and nation in this regard.
Rouhani also stressed the importance of proceeding with political talks and measures aimed at restoring the rights of the Syrian people.
The top Syrian parliamentarian said Damascus opposes the presence of US forces on its soil and has officially called for their withdrawal.
