DAMASCUS (Dispatches) — Iran and Syria vowed on Sunday to take “mighty steps” to confront U.S. sanctions imposed on the two regional allies, saying their relations will strengthen under Iran’s new leadership.
The announcement was made by Iran’s new Foreign Minister Hussein Amir-Abdollahian, who was received at the airport a visit to Damascus by his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad.
Iran has been one of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s strongest backers, helping the country with a pre-war population of 23 million redeem its territories from the most brutal terrorists.
Syrian government forces now control much of Syria. But the country has been suffering for years under ruthless American and European Union sanctions.
U.S. Treasury sanctions have targeted a network that spans Syria, Iran and Russia, and which is responsible for shipping oil to the Syrian government.
American sanctions were imposed on Tehran after former President Donald Trump pulled America out of a nuclear deal between Iran and world powers in 2018.
The sanctions have caused severe fuel shortages in Syria, which has been relying mostly on Iranian oil shipments that have been subjected to mysterious attacks over the past two years. Syria has blamed the occupying regime of Israel for the sabotage attacks.
“The leadership of the two countries will together take mighty steps to confront economic terrorism and reduce pressure on our people,” Amir-Abdollahian said at the airport.
Amir-Abdollahian’s visit to Syria comes a day after he represented Iran in a conference attended by officials from around the Middle East aimed at easing regional tensions.
He said Iran’s relations with Iraq and Syria are of a strategic nature as he underlined the need to uphold consultations among the regional countries to establish lasting security.
Amir-Abdollahian described Syria as the “land of resistance,” adding that Damascus and Tehran had worked together “on the ground and achieved joint victories.”
He said the blood of Iranians and Syrians, spilled on the battlefield of the fight against terrorism in Syria, is a guarantee for the continuation of the strategic relations between the two countries.
“We have entered a new phase of trade and economic relations between the two countries and people,” Amir-Abdollahian said, adding that Syria, as a friend of the Islamic Republic of Iran, has continued to prosper and flourish in recent years.
The Syrian foreign minister

lauded Iran’s support for the people and government of Syria, stressing the need for the continuation of bilateral cooperation between Tehran and Damascus in all areas.
He told reporters after the meeting that the occupying regime of Israel is the prime cause of insecurity in the region.
“Zionists have taken Muslims, Christians and even Jews hostage in the historical land of Palestine,” he said.
He also said the presence of foreign forces in the region would not contribute to the establishment of security and sustainable stability.