Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said that Iran has already established contacts with a large segment of the Syrian opposition

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said that Iran has already established contacts with a large segment of the Syrian opposition.  

"On the Syria issue, we have made all our efforts to establish security and stability in the region and we are ready to use all our capacities in this regard," he said in his weekly press conference in Tehran on Tuesday.

He described Iran's role in the settlement of the regional crises as undeniable, and said, "Due to this fact, (UN-Arab League Special Envoy on Syria) Kofi Annan made his second trip to Tehran to use Iran's viewpoints on the settlement of the crisis in Syria."

Voicing Iran's readiness to mediate meetings between the Syrian government and opposition, Mehmanparast said, "We believe that the demands of the opposition and of those who are pursuing some rights in Syria should be raised in proper conditions, but without the interference of the foreign forces and imposition of their formulae, and the necessary measures should also be adopted proportionate to demands and based on what the majority of people want."

He blasted the western states for their meddling in Syria, and said, "Certain trans-regional countries attempt to lead the situation in Syria towards a civil war or crisis which is not acceptable."

On Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi announced Tehran's readiness to hold meetings with the Syrian dissidents in a move to facilitate talks between the opposing parties in the Muslim country.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to have meetings with Syrian dissidents to invite them to Iran in a bid to prepare and facilitate the ground for talks between the Syrian dissidents and government," Salehi told reporters.

The Foreign Ministry spokesman also called on Saudi Arabia to avoid suppression of people and meet its nation's demands, warning that suppression will further complicate the crisis in the Muslim state.

"We hope that the Saudi officials, too, listen to the voice of a part of the nation who have some demands and meet their demands by taking proper actions." Suppression and the arrest of people will further complicate Saudi Arabia's problems, he stated.