Iran Says No Preconditions for Joining Syria Talks

Iran, the main regional ally of the government in Damascus, said Tuesday it is ready to take part in a peace conference on Syria but will not accept any preconditions.

The conference, known as Geneva II and initiated by Russia and the United States, is scheduled to be held in the Swiss city on January 22 after a series of delays. Its participants are still undecided.

"Iran's presence at the Geneva II conference will be important for resolving the Syrian crisis and we are ready to participate in the negotiations without any preconditions," Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said, quoted by the official IRNA news agency.

He was referring to a U.S. demand that to win a place at the negotiations, Iran must first sign up to an agreement reached in Geneva last year that envisaged the creation of a transitional government in Damascus.

Tehran has never endorsed that plan, and has repeatedly ruled out the possibility of Assad stepping aside before his current term expires in 2014.

But Syria's main opposition bloc, the National Coalition, says it will only attend the Geneva II talks on the condition President Bashar Assad has no role in the transitional phase.

According to France and the United States, the second gathering could lead to the establishment of a transitional government.

The Syrian regime said Tuesday that "the fight against terrorism is crucial for the success of any peaceful solution to the crisis."

In Tehran, Zarif reiterated that a "political solution was the only viable option to resolve the Syrian crisis," which has so far claimed more than 120,000 lives in more than two years of civil war.

"This solution can be found," the Iranian minister added.

The Syrian opposition accuses Tehran of providing military support on the ground to the army.

Iran denies this and says its aid to Damascus is only in the form of economic assistance while admitting to the presence of "advisers" inside Syria.