Syrian president, Iranian official discuss "escalatory stances" with U.S.

DAMASCUS, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Syria's President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday discussed the "escalatory stances" of the U.S. administration with a visiting Iranian official, according to a report by the state news agency SANA.

Bashar al-Assad (File photo: VCG)

Assad received in the capital Damascus Ali Asghar Khaji, a senior aide of the Iranian foreign minister, during which both sides discussed the developments of the Iranian nuclear agreement after Washington backed out of it, and "the recent U.S. escalatory positions which seek to destabilize the region and increase tension in it," said the report.

The official news agency said Assad affirmed Syria's support for Iran and its leadership in defending the people's rights against all threats and acts that violate the basis of international law.

The talks also touched upon the situation in Syria's Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria, and the upcoming round of Astana talks about Syria.

Khaji underscored the strength of the "strategic relations" between the two countries, affirming Iran's determination to continue bolstering them in all fields to serve the interests of both sides.

He added that the Iranian leadership and people have and will always support Syria until it liberates all its territory and rebuilds what has been destroyed by war.

The visit comes two days after Israel carried out intensive missile strikes on Syria, reportedly targeting positions of the Iranian Islamic Revolution Guards Corps and Lebanese Hezbollah group.

The Syrian government has repeatedly charged that Israel supports the terror groups in Syria and its repeated strikes are nothing but a way to lift the rebels' morale.

Meanwhile, Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes in Syria throughout the eight-year conflict, most of them against what it says were targets of Iranian-backed militia groups such as the Lebanese Hezbollah.

Israel says it is determined to prevent Iran from entrenching itself militarily in Syria, where Teheran backs President Bashar al-Assad.