The Iranian ambassador to the United Nations denies that the Islamic Republic has military presence in Syria, accusing regional countries of sending arms and terrorist groups to the crisis-hit country.

The Iranian ambassador to the United Nations denies that the Islamic Republic has military presence in Syria, accusing regional countries of sending arms and terrorist groups to the crisis-hit country.

“Despite the unfounded allegations, no Iranian military forces or advisors are present in Syria, but, unfortunately, certain regional countries are interfering in Syria’s internal affairs and fanning the flame of the conflict in the country by sending arms to extremist and terrorist groups,” Mohammad Khazaei said.

He stressed that Iran welcomes any measure aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the unrest in Syria and noted that Tehran will host a third meeting with the same objective in the coming days.

The Friends of Syria Conference will be held in the Iranian capital under the banner of “Political Solution, Regional Stability” on May 29. Iran had held two other meetings on the crisis in the Arab country in November and August 2012.

Khazaei emphasized that the involvement of other countries in the issue of Syria at regional and international scenes should be aimed at supporting a peaceful solution to the ongoing crisis by the Syrian people, and should also prevent the interference of other states in the country’s internal affairs.

He reiterated that the political future of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should be determined only through holding elections in the country.