Any military action in northern Syria to harm entire region, benefit terrorists: Leader tells Turkey

Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a Tuesday meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is in Tehran to take part in a tripartite summit aimed at helping restore peace and stability to war-torn Syria.

At the meeting with Erdogan, Ayatollah Khamenei described as “very important” the issue of Syria’s territorial integrity.

The Leader stated that fighting terrorism is a must “but a military incursion of Syria will benefit terrorists. Of course, terrorists are not limited to a specific group.”

Referring to the Turkish president’s call for Iran’s cooperation in fighting terrorist groups, the Leader said, “We will definitely cooperate with you in the battle against terror.”

Ayatollah Khamenei added that Iran regards security in Turkey and its border areas as its own and called on Turkey to pursue a similar approach vis-à-vis its neighbor Syria.

“The Syrian issues must be settled through negotiations, and Iran, Turkey, Syria and Russia must solve this issue through dialog,” Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized.

The Leader stressed the importance of “useful and necessary” cooperation between Iran and Turkey on all regional issues, saying, “We have always defended your government in internal issues and against [instances of] interference and as you have said, we have been each other’s friends in difficult times and we pray for the Muslim nation of Turkey.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei also pointed to the issue of Palestine and stated that the Israeli regime is one of the main forces driving a wedge among Muslim countries.

The Leader added that the US and Israeli regime cannot stop the Palestinians’ deep-rooted movement.

Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized that the US and the Zionist regime should not be relied upon and said, “Today, neither the Zionist regime, nor the US nor others will be able to stop the deep movement of the Palestinians, and the final result will be in the interest of the Palestinian people.”

Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized that maintenance of the Islamic Ummah’s dignity and honor hinges on overcoming differences and remaining vigilant against divisive policies and said the usurping Zionist regime, supported by the United States, is one of the factors that sow discord and hostility in the region.

The Leader once again reiterated that Palestine is the first and foremost issue of the Muslim world and emphasized that despite some regional governments’ “inclination” toward Israel, Muslims nations are “deeply against” the occupying regime.