TEHRAN – Syria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Bashar al-Jaafari has hailed relations between Tehran and Damascus as strategic.

The Syrian diplomat made the remarks during a celebration held at the Iranian embassy in Damascus on the occasion of the 43rd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. 

Al-Jaafari offered congratulations to the Iranian people and the Iranian leadership on their glorious revolution, indicating in his speech that the principles of this revolution are consistent with the principles of Syria and the values it believes in, and that Syria is one of the first countries to announce its support for that revolution and considered it a supporter of the countries of the region and not a threat to them.

Al-Jaafari stressed that Syria and Iran are the cradles of well-established civilizations throughout history, and the relations between the two countries are deeply rooted in those civilizations, and that the events targeting the entire region since 2011 have proven the truthfulness of the historical reading of the founders of the Syrian-Iranian relations, according to the website of Al Alam news television. 

Al-Jaafari pointed out that Syria considers Iran a strategic partner and appreciates its responsible role as a country that respects international law, pluralism and the United Nations charter and contributes to confronting imperialist powers and their practices.

He stressed Syria's readiness to continue joint work in order to deepen and strengthen cooperation and exchange in all fields.

For his part, the Iranian ambassador in Damascus, Mehdi Sobhani, said that the unwavering support for the Resistance Axis and the Palestinian cause and the deepening of cooperation with friendly countries, especially sisterly Syria, are among the priorities of Iran's foreign policy.

The ambassador added that the political will in both Tehran and Damascus is to deepen cooperation at all levels.

Sobhani stressed that his country supports Syria's sovereignty and condemns the illegal presence of foreign elements on its lands, stressing the need to return every inch of these lands to Syrian sovereignty.

Sobhani expressed his country's conviction that the Syrian people, despite all the pressures exerted on them, defeated enemies in their struggle against terrorism, and through their resistance, they would give lessons to the terrorists and their international supporters.

The ceremony was attended by Syrian Minister of Administrative Development Salam Safaf, Economy Minister Muhammad Samer al-Khalil, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Bassam Ibrahim, Minister of Communications Muhammad Iyad al-Khatib, member of the central leadership of the Arab Socialist Baath Party Mahdi Dakhlallah, a number of Arab and foreign ambassadors and representatives of diplomatic missions accredited in Damascus.

In Latakia, the cultural center of the Iranian embassy also hosted a celebration marking the 1979 revolution with the participation of political, scientific, religious and literary figures.

In his speech, Ali Reza Fadavi, the cultural attaché at the embassy, stressed that the Islamic Revolution moved Iran to a new stage in which it achieved many achievements in various fields, which placed it in the ranks of the advanced countries in the region and the world, and it became a role model and an example for all free people and fighters against injustice and tyranny.

For his part, Director of the Great Prophet Complex in Latakia, Ayman Zaitoun, pointed to the achievements of the Islamic Revolution, especially support for the Axis of Resistance and liberation movements, as well as confronting and thwarting all conspiracies being hatched against the region.

Earlier on Friday, the Iranian embassy in Baghdad marked the forty-third anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution with a massive public celebration, in the presence of political and cultural figures, including the Iranian ambassador to Iraq, Iraj Masjedi, according to U News.

The ceremony began with a recitation of the Holy Qur’an, followed by the national anthems of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraq, and then a video clip of a choral group, and then an Iraqi poet recited a poem inspired by the occasion.

Masjedi delivered a speech during the ceremony, in which he said, “By God's grace, the system of the Islamic Republic of Iran was established according to Islamic and religious principles in the hands of a distinguished Islamic figure, and this sacred system continued in the hands of [Ayatollah] Seyed Ali Khamenei, who represents the religious authority.”

Masjedi pointed out that the system of the Islamic Republic of Iran was established according to two principles, the first is the republican based on the people and the second is the Islamic one based on religion and the people are the main pillar of the revolution, the system and religion.  And Islam is the content of this system.

He added: “The title of our system is to rely on the people and also adopt religious principles. The Islamic Republic extends the hand of friendship and cooperation to all countries with all sincerity and seriousness.”