Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian, who is in Moscow for an official visit, said Tuesday that Iran and Russia will keep holding talks with the Syrian opposition to find a political solution to the deadly crisis in the Arab country. Addressing a press conference at Russia's Rossiya Segodnya news agency, Amir Abdollahian also stressed that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should be a part of any solution to the crisis. The senior Iranian diplomat said Tehran and Moscow are determined to use their full potential to help Syria out of the crisis. He added that the foreign ministers of Iran and Russia are scheduled to discuss the Syrian crisis on the sidelines of the 70th session of the UN General Assembly underway in New York. Amir Abdollahian arrived in the Russian capital of Moscow on Monday morning to hold talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov on regional issues including the ongoing crises in Syria, Iraq, and Yemen as well as the fight against terrorism. Iran and Russia, known as the main allies of Syria, have redoubled efforts in recent weeks to find a solution to the crisis that has plagued the Arab country for more than four years. Earlier in September, Amir Abdollahian and Bogdanov in a telephone conversation underlined Iran and Russia's support for finding political solutions to the ongoing crises in Syria and Yemen. Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011 with Takfiri terrorists, including militants from the ISIL terrorist group, currently controlling parts of it, mostly in the east. More than 220,000 people have been killed in the four-year conflict that has driven 4 million refugees abroad.
