PHOTO: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov
Iran’s Foreign Minister Zarif is leading a delegation to Russia on Friday for discussions with Russian and Syrian officials.
Iranian media is framing the meeting as a session on “anti-terror strategy”, but it comes amid questions about the approach of Russia, Iran, and the Assad regime to Syria’s largest city Aleppo.
Enabled by Russian airpower, pro-Assad forces — including Iranian commanders and troops, Hezbollah fighters, and Iranian-led foreign militias — imposed a siege on opposition-held areas of Aleppo in late August.
However, Russia and the Assad regime have come under increasing political pressure over their attempt to break resistance in eastern Aleppo city with the siege and bombing that has killed more than 600 civilians.
See Syria Daily, Oct 28: Russia Blocks Further Investigation of Assad Regime’s Chemical Attacks
Zarif will begin with a lunch ceremony at the Russian Foreign Ministry. He and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will then hold a tripartite meeting with Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem.
On arrival at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport, Zarif said, “Unfortunately, some countries have always pursued war and a military solution in Syria. This is while the solution to this crisis is of a political nature and also [entails] a battle against Takfiri groups.”
