The Office of the Supreme Leader

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution in a meeting with the President of Turkey

One of the causes of discord and enmity is the usurping Zionist regime

Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in the meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his delegation before noon today (Tuesday), emphasized the need to increase cooperation between the two countries, especially commercial cooperation, and listed the Zionist regime as one of the leading causes of discord between Islamic countries. Emphasizing that the United States and the usurping regime cannot stop the profound movement of Palestinians, he noted regarding the Syrian issue: Maintaining the territorial integrity of Syria is very important, and any military attack in northern Syria will definitely be detrimental to Turkey, Syria and the entire region, and will benefit terrorists.
In this meeting, Ayatollah Khamenei called the volume and quality of economic exchanges and cooperation between the two countries much less than the existing capacities and emphasized: This issue should be resolved in the negotiations between the presidents. He stated that the honour and greatness of the Islamic Ummah depended on overcoming the differences of taste and vigilance against divisive policies and said: One of the causes of discord and enmity in the region is the usurping Zionist regime, which The United States also is a supporter of.
The leader of the revolution listed Palestine as the number one priority of the Islamic world and emphasized: that despite the favour of some governments towards the Zionist regime, the nations are deeply opposed to this usurping regime.
Emphasizing that The United States and the Zionist regime should not be relied on, he said: Today, neither the Zionist regime, nor The United States, nor others will be able to stop the profound movement of the Palestinians, and the result will be in favour of the Palestinian people.
Ayatollah Khamenei further considered the issue of territorial integrity of Syria to be very important, and by referring to some quotes about a military attack on northern Syria, he emphasized: This is definitely to the detriment of Syria, Turkey, and the region. It will not fulfil the political expectations of the Syrian government. Referring to the Turkish President's hatred of terrorist groups, he said: "Terrorism must be opposed, but a military attack in Syria will benefit terrorists, although terrorists are not limited to a specific group."
In response to the Turkish President's request for Iran's cooperation in to fight against terrorist groups, the leader of the Islamic Revolution said: We will certainly cooperate with you in the fight against terrorism.
Ayatollah Khamenei, emphasizing that we consider the security of Turkey and its borders to be our security, addressed Mr Erdogan and said: You should consider the security of Syria your security. Syria's issues should be resolved through negotiations, and Iran, Turkey, Syria, and Russia should finish this issue through dialogue.
He also expressed his satisfaction with the return of Karabakh to Azerbaijan and said: Of course, if there is a policy to block the Iran-Armenia border, the Islamic Republic will oppose it because this border is a communication route that has been thousands of years old.
The Leader of the Revolution called increasing cooperation between Iran and Turkey in all regional issues valuable and necessary and added: We have always defended your government in internal issues and against interference, and as you said, we are friends of each other in difficult times, and we pray for the Muslim nation of Turkey.
In this meeting, which was also attended by Iran's President  Mr Raisi, Mr Erdogan congratulated the two Eids of al-Adha and al-Ghadir, considered it necessary to unite the Islamic Ummah and increase the solidarity of Iran and Turkey and said that Turkey has never been silent in the face of atrocities against Iran and the brotherhood of Iran and Turkey must expand in all areas.
Emphasizing that he has always been and will be against unilateral sanctions against Iran, Mr Erdogan said: We support Iran's legitimate expectations in the JCPOA and encourage Turkish companies to invest in Iran.
Referring to the conflict between Iran and Turkey with terrorists for many years, the President of Turkey said: In Syria, terrorist groups are supported by heavy weapons from Western countries such as Germany, England, France, and especially the United States. Mr Erdogan stated that Turkey's position regarding the territorial integrity of Syria is clear, adding: We expect the Syrian government to start political processes. The Syrian issue is on the agenda at the Astana summit, and we hope to achieve good results.

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