Iranian Foreign Minister Travels To Damascus Amid Tensions Between Syria, Turkey

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (file photo)

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has traveled to Damascus in a bid to "prevent a new crisis" amid tensions between Syria and Turkey over Ankara’s threats to launch a new offensive against Kurdish militias in northern Syria.

Amir-Abdollahian said on July 2 that his trip "was aimed at establishing peace and security in the region between Syria and Turkey."

"Developments are happening in the region [and Iran should] try to prevent a new crisis in the region," he said.

The Syrian civil war killed thousands of people and drove millions from their homes and the country.

Iran and Russia backed the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey and the United States supported differing rebel groups.

Ankara has also conducted military operations against Kurdish groups in northern Syria, accusing them of having links to Kurdish separatist groups inside Turkey.

Meanwhile, Iran is also plagued by Kurdish separatist elements in its own country.

The Iranian foreign minister’s trip to Damascus comes days after he visited Turkey to meet with leaders there.

"We understand Turkey's security concerns very well," he told a news conference in Ankara with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

In Syria, Amir-Abdollahian was quoted by Iranian state news agency IRNA as saying, "After my visit to Turkey...it is necessary to have consultations with the Syrian authorities."

He was also quoted as saying he opposed any new military incursion into Syria by Turkish forces.

With reporting by AFP and AP