Syria welcomes outcome of Iran conference

DAMASCUS - The Syrian Foreign Ministry said on Monday that it welcomes the communique of the International Conference on Syria hosted by Iran.

In a statement issued Monday, the ministry thanked Iran and the participating countries for their efforts to help Syria overcome its crisis "on the basis of defending the legitimate rights of the Syrian people via the peaceful national dialogue and far from any foreign intervention in Syria".

Iran called for "serious and inclusive" dialogue between the Syrian government and opposition on Thursday after hosting an international conference on the Syria crisis.

"We want them (the opposition) to sit down with the Syrian government and cooperate so that the implementation of the reforms can be hastened and help the violence stop," Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi said after a four-hour meeting in Tehran attended by representatives from 29 nations, including Russia, China and India.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also made an appeal for a Syrian-led transition process "based on dialogue and compromise", warning the country may fall into a long-term civil war.

"We face the grim possibility of long-term civil war destroying Syria's rich tapestry of interwoven communities," Ban said in a statement delivered to the Tehran conference.