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http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-08/08/content_3324314.htm

Syrian president visits Iran

www.chinaview.cn 2005-08-08 10:34:06

TEHRAN, Aug. 7 (Xinhuanet) -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived here Sunday for a
two-day official visit, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Bashar, who is heading a high-ranking delegation, was welcomed by his Iranian counterpart
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the Presidential Office, the report said.

During his stay in Tehran, Bashar is scheduled to hold talks with high-ranking Iranian officials on
issues of mutual interest.

Earlier, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi said that Assad's visit to Tehran was
taking place on two topics -- offering felicitations to Ahmadinejad and holding negotiations on
bilateral and regional issues.

Assad became the first head of state visiting Iran after Ahmadinejad took office on Wednesday,
according to IRNA.Iranian media on Saturday branded Syria as a strategic ally and highly praised
the visit, saying it will have a significant impact on political and economic fronts for Iran, Syria and
Lebanon.

Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Naji Otri paid a visit to Iran in February, during which the
two sides called for a united front to confront economic sanctions imposed on them by the United
States.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmad Azizi said in March that Iran-Syria cooperation had no
military or security nature.After the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri
on Feb. 14, Syria was forced to withdraw all of its troops from Lebanon in late April in line with
UN Security Council Resolution 1559, ending a 29-year military presence in its neighbor.

Iran maintains close relations with pro-Syrian Hezbollah, a Shiite militant group which helped
end Israeli occupation in south Lebanon in 2000. Enditem