Iran says US presence in Syria damaged peace, security

Beirut, Dec 22 (AP) Iran's Foreign Ministry says the U.S. military presence in Syria has damaged the region in the government's first comments on President Donald Trump's plan to pull U.S. troops from

Beirut, Dec 22 (AP) Iran’s Foreign Ministry says the U.S. military presence in Syria has damaged the region in the government’s first comments on President Donald Trump’s plan to pull U.S. troops from the war-torn country.

The official IRNA news agency on Saturday quoted Bahram Ghasemi, ministry spokesman, as saying the presence of U.S. troops during Syria’s civil war has damaged peace and security in the region.

Ghasemi says: “Basically, the deployment and presence of U.S. forces in the region was wrong, illogical and a tension-maker.” Iran has been a key supporter of the Syrian government.

In a tweet, Trump on Wednesday announced he was pulling all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria.

A senior Kurdish politician on Friday called on France to play a larger role in Syria following the U.S. withdrawal. (AP) SMJ

This is published unedited from the PTI feed.