TEHRAN — Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Tehran on Monday to meet his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian as well as President Ebrahim Raisi.

In the meeting with Mekdad, Raisi said long-term and comprehensive plans should be drawn up to deepen ties between Tehran and Damascus.

The president described the volume of trade and economic exchanges between the two countries much lower than the desired level, saying, “There are many capacities to increase the volume of economic exchanges between the two countries… the volume of economic exchanges can be increased several times.”

Raisi then referred to the illegal presence of foreign forces in the region and in Syria, saying that it will endanger the security and stability of the region.

The president stressed the importance of maintaining Syria's security and stability, saying Syria is at the forefront of resistance against Israel with its anti-Israel approach and “the history of the resistance of Syrian people and government against cowardly aggression will be proudly recorded.”

Emphasizing the need to respect the territorial integrity of Syria, Raisi said, “Ignoring the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries by any country is not acceptable and the Syrian people will certainly not tolerate it.”

Mekdad also conveyed the message of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to Raisi. Mekdad also said that Syria is determined to activate all capacities for cooperation with the aim of growing Tehran-Damascus relations in line with the interest of the two nations.

The Syrian foreign minister also said, “The United States uses the evilest methods in its relations with some countries in the region and seeks to dominate the Zionists in the region by disrespecting and humiliating those countries.”

“With the resistance of the Syrian people and the Resistance Front, the conspiracies of the United States, the Zionist regime and its allies in the region have failed, and today they have reached the point that Syria has not failed and they have changed their approach," he said.

In a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart, Mekdad also said that Syria vows to develop relations with Iran as much as possible and to move in a direction that will serve the interests of the nations of the two countries. 

“We want these relationships to reach the highest possible level,” he added. 

Syrian FM says Israelis should not make mistakes in their calculations

About the recent Israeli strikes on the outskirts of Damascus, the Syrian Foreign Minister said, “The continuous Israeli attacks against Syria cannot go unanswered. We are responding to these attacks every moment and every day, and the terrorists and their supporters who invaded Syria were the enemies of Syria. They armed and supported the terrorists, and Israel is continuing to do so today.”

He then said that Syria is responding to these aggressions in various ways, especially by continuing to pursue the remnants of terrorist groups, many of which are supported by Israel. 

He added, “Israelis should not make mistakes in their calculations and they should know that Syria always has the ability to respond to these attacks.”

We ask U.S. to remove the cruel sanctions 

On the humanitarian condition in Syria, Mekdad said that the inhumane U.S. and Western sanctions imposed on Syria have worsened the economic situation in Syria. 

“The problems of Iraq, Syria and Lebanon are due to such behaviors. Some may think that these sanctions will benefit them. I call on all countries, including developing countries, to break their silence on these sanctions and take a stand,” he reiterated.

“These sanctions target the poor and needy, and women and children. By insisting on these sanctions, the United States and Western countries are violating all the values they claim. We call for the lifting of these economic sanctions as soon as possible,” he highlighted.