Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the Islamic Republic had alerted the Syrian government to an impending offensive by militants before it was launched. Still, the Syrian army was “surprisingly” incapable of countering the lightning onslaught.
Araghchi made the remarks on Sunday following the fall of the Syrian government after militant groups led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) stormed the capital Damascus.
Araghchi said that during his recent meeting, he found President Bashar al-Assad surprised and complaining about the state of his army.
The Iranian foreign minister said that the main responsibility to protect the country was of the Syrian army, and Iran did not consider itself a duty in this regard.
“The Syrian government did not expect this from us either, because this issue was related to the internal matters of Syria, the government's relationship with the opposition groups and the people of the country,” Araghchi said.
“In this regard, Iran could only provide guidance and advice,” he said.