TEHRAN, Feb 17: Iran on Thursday urged regional countries to create a powerful alliance and remain vigilant in the face of US and Israeli plots, a call coming a day after Syria and Iran declared they would form a united front
in the face of any threats.
The United States has recently escalated its criticism of both Syria and Iran, demanding that Syria withdraw its troops from Lebanon and accusing Tehran of running a covert nuclear weapons program.
The US has also said both countries need to do more to prevent guerillas from travelling to Iraq from their territory. Iran's former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, speaking after meeting Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Naji al Otari, said strengthening relations between Iran, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and other Muslim states in the region was of great importance.
He said it was in the interest of their people to create a powerful alliance through close cooperation. Mr Rafsanjani, who is widely expected to run in Iran's June presidential elections, said that the United States and Israel were trying to create divisions among the region's countries, which he said must 'stay completely vigilant vis-a-vis the US and Israeli plots'.
Al Otari was quoted by IRNA as saying that Israel was 'the source of instability' in the Middle East and that Syria would continue supporting the Palestinians and Lebanese in their struggle.
On Wednesday, Syria and Iran, both facing pressure from the US, said they would form a united front to confront possible threats against them. But later the same day the Syrian ambassador to the US, Imad Moustapha, said in a television interview: 'We don't need an alliance against the United States.". Both countries are under US economic sanctions and the target of intense American pressure.
Iran, which US President George Bush had labelled as part of an 'axis of evil' with North Korea and pre-war Iraq, was named an outpost of tyranny last month by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
The United States has accused Iran of seeking to produce nuclear weapons, while relations with Syria have deteriorated, especially since the attack that killed former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri. -APP
