Syria’s warring parties have declared a 48-hour ceasefire in two frontline areas after unprecedented mediation from Turkey and Iran, signalling a new approach by some of the main regional backers of the opposing sides.
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Replying to a question he said Iran has completed its part of the gas pipeline and is waiting for Pakistan to complete its part.
Sartaj Aziz shakes hands with Javad Zarif at the foreign ministry in Islamabad.
The Iranian foreign minister also penned an article in the Cumhuriyet daily, a platform that is deeply critical of Erdoğan, on Tuesday, the day of his scheduled visit.
Three officials close to Damascus described the temporary cease-fire as a result of mediation by Turkey, which backs rebels fighting against President Bashar al-Assad, and Iran, whose support has been vital to his survival.
‘The new atmosphere created after the nuclear agreement between Iran and the six world powers has created suitable opportunity for broadening of ties between the two countries, ‘ Zarif told reporters upon his arrival at Indira Ghandi global Airport in New Delhi on Thursday night.
Most recently, Muctaba Amani, a former Iranian diplomat in Cairo, claimed that the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has been used by world powers as a tool, and some of the regional countries have joined the foray.
Officials said Mr. Zarif’s visit would serve as a “follow-up” to the meeting between Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Prime Minister Modi on the sidelines of the Ufa SCO summit in July.
“We are ready to cooperate, exchange ideas, and work together with these nations to fight extremism, terrorism, and sectarianism”, Zarif said in a press conference in Beirut.
Shortly afterward, government warplanes attacked the rebel-held suburbs of Douma, Saqba, Kafr Batna and Hammouriyeh in the Eastern Ghouta region, killing at least 37 civilians and wounded more than 100, according to the Observatory.
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Zarif, who arrives here from Islamabad in the evening, will call on Modi on Friday morning at 7, Race Course Road. The regime supported by Iran has ruled during a time in which hundreds-of-thousands of Syrians have been slaughtered over the past few years, most of whom by their own government, according to estimates. The city is situated about 45 kilometers (30 miles) northwest of Damascus and about 10 kilometers from the Lebanon border.
