TEHRAN – Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami said on Wednesday that Tehran is against any kind of military aggression and respects other countries’ territorial integrity.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran attaches importance to joint political initiative in solving the Syrian crisis and opposes any kind of military aggression against other countries and respect the countries’ territorial integrity and national sovereignty,” Hatami said during a speech at the Moscow International Security Conference.

Following is an excerpt of his speech:

Given its geopolitical and geostrategic characteristics, the West Asian region is one of the main focal centers of developments at international level which has made some power players, especially the U.S., worried.

Many efforts have been made to weaken the regional unity and integrity to serve the U.S. interests.

The policy of seeking power and monopoly has laid the ground for growth of terrorist groups. 

Unfortunately, the region has not been stabilized, because Daesh is not completely annihilated and there is tension among regional and extra-regional actors.

The Islamic Republic of Iran is on the belief that extremism and terrorism are the most serious challenges and a defense strategy which is based on cooperation is required to fight them.

Cooperation among Syria, Iraq, Iran, Russia and Turkey can be a role model for all regional countries in countering terrorism.

Iran is against the U.S. hegemony and also the Zionist regime of Israel’s destructive role in spreading violence and extremism. Iran considers interference in regional countries’ affairs and efforts to disintegrate them contrary to the interests of regional people.

The Islamic Republic of Iran welcomes Russia’s role in helping establish security in the region and protect the regional countries’ integrity.

NA/PA