Syria
This handout picture released by the Iranian Presidency, shows Syria's President Bashar al-Assad (R) receiving his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi (L) at the presidential palace in Damascus on May 3, 2023. Photo: Iranian Presidency/AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran’s foreign ministry on Thursday reacted to the United States’ dissatisfaction about President Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to Syria, saying the reaction is “natural” and telling Washington to “be angry and die angry.”
Raisi met with Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday in Damascus, marking the first visit to Syria since the war began in 2011.
“Of course, the annoyance of a malicious regime, whose horns in Syria and the whole region have been broken by Iran and the resistance axis, and it must end its aggressive presence in Syria, is natural,” Nasser Kanaani, spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry, said in response to Washington’s concern about the visit.
Vedant Patel, US State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson, on Wednesday said that Iran and Syria “continuing to deepen their ties should be of great concern to not just our allies and partners and countries in the region, but also the world broadly,” criticizing Tehran and Damascus for having a hand in destabilizing activities in the region.
While blasting America’s concern about the visit, Kanaani delivered a firm message to Washington: “be angry and die angry.”
“The Syrian government and nation went through great difficulties, and today we can say that you have overcome these problems and managed to achieve victory despite the threats and sanctions that were imposed against you,” Raisi told Assad during the meeting.
The two leaders signed 15 agreements of cooperation between Syria and Iran during the meeting, with both leaders expressing their hopes that the visit would result in even stronger relations between the countries.
Iran is one of the main backers of Assad, providing him with financial and military support over the course of the 12-year-old conflict, aiding in propping his government against opposition forces. A number of Iran-backed militia groups are also present in Syria, being frequently targeted by Israeli air attacks.
Raisi also congratulated Assad for his “victory” in the war and remaining in power despite the challenges his rule faced since the outbreak of conflict.
Syrians rose up against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in March 2011, leading to a full-scale civil war that has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Syrian people and has left millions more in need of humanitarian assistance.
Largely assisted by Russian air attacks and Iranian support, Assad restored control over most of the country after 12 years of war killed half a million people and displaced almost half of the Syrian population.
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