The country’s top security official says Iran will maintain its advisory presence in Syria as long as it is necessary and will continue to support resistance groups.
“Tehran will not accede to US demands for sweeping changes in its unwavering regional policy. So long as the threat of terrorism exists in Syria and that country's legitimate government subscribes to Iran's advisory presence, we will stay in Syria," Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, told Al Jazeera in an interview.
"This is our unwavering policy and is not limited only to Syria," he added, noting that Iran's support for the Palestinians against Israel and for Kuwait after the invasion of the emirate by Iraq in 1990 had roots in the same principle.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week called on Iran to halt support for regional allies such as Lebanon's Hezbollah and withdraw all forces from Syria.
Shamkhani reiterated that Iran's role in Syria is aimed specifically at fighting terrorists, particularly the self-styled Islamic State terror group, aka Daesh and ISIS.
"The defeat and degradation of Daesh had nothing to do with the so-called anti-terror campaign led by the US…Rather the cooperation between Iran, Russia and Syria led to the defeat and annihilation of the terror outfits, including Daesh, in Syria," he said, referring to the territorial defeat of the mediaeval militant group in the war-ravaged Arab state late last year.
People's Will
Asked about Pompeo's demand that Iran cut its support for resistance organizations — who oppose the US and Israel in the region—the official said it is Washington who should change its policy and respect people's will in Palestine, Lebanon and other countries.
The fact that Hezbollah and its political allies made significant gains in recent parliamentary elections in Lebanon and the Palestinians' support for Hamas show that Iran is on people's side, he told the Qatari satellite TV station.
On US calls for Iran to hold negotiations over its ballistic missile program, Shamkhani said, "We do not ask anyone's permission for developing our conventional defenses and will not hold any talks in this regard."
He also commented on Tehran-Riyadh ties, saying that the interference by the United States and Israel has negatively affected relations between the two Persian Gulf powers. Tehran and Riyadh do not have diplomatic ties.
"Iran has always wanted normal relations with Saudi Arabia—but with dignity, not from a position of weakness.”
