The Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani , has stressed that presence of some countries in Syria, has only further complicated the situation in that country. Shamkhani said: "Their presence in Syria is illegitimate, and in practice, they are only helping the defeated front of Takfiri terrorism."

Shamkhani, who is currently in Sochi,  Russia, attending the Forum of Five Continents High Security Officials, made the remark in a meeting with the Secretary of Russia's National Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, on Tuesday night.

During the meeting, the two officials discussed a wide range of subjects including the pace of  cooperation in the fight against terrorism, the crisis in Yemen, insecurity in Afghanistan,  and how defeated terrorist groups from Syria managed to relocate themselves to Central Asia.

Referring to the crucial role of Iran and Russia in eliminating increasing threat of terrorism in Syria, Shamkhani slammed some countries for their illegitimate presence in the country. 

Shamkhani went on to describe the Astana and Sochi political meetings as guarantor of continued ceasefire in de-escalation zones and a means to end hostilities and bloodshed in Syria.

Criticizing inattention to Iran and Russia’s proposal for launching independent and impartial probes into alleged chemical attack on Douma and the joint missile strike on Syria, by US, Britain and France, Shamkhani said there have been attempts to undermine the  political mechanisms for solving the Syrian crisis.

Patrushev, for his part, expressed pleasure with Shamkhani’s presence in the security meeting, saying the meeting amounts to a joint attempt by over 100 countries from five continents to substitute dialogue and understanding for militarism and violence.

Patrushev hailed Iran-Russia experience of close cooperation in fighting terrorism as very successful, saying  the experience can be used as a role-model for political and security cooperation among Central Asian states.

Condemning US bad promises regarding JCPOA, Patrushev reiterated Russia’s decisive support for the Iran nuclear deal, believing that Iran should benefit from the international pact without limitations.