Iran provides Syria, Iraq with weapons, military experts

Alaedin Boroujerdi(R), head of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee, speaks during a press conference in Damascus, capital of Syria, on Oct 15, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

DAMASCUS - The visiting head of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee, Alaedin Boroujerdi, said here on Thursday that Tehran only provides weapons and military experts to Syria and Iraq.

"Regarding our support to Iraq and Syria, such support comes upon the request of those countries, and according to our anti-terror strategy in Iran, we provide weapons and military experts to both countries," Boroujerdi told a press conference in Damascus.

On the issue of sending Iranian troops to Syria, the Iranian official said his country would consider sending troops to Syria if the Syrian government requested that.

"Any further request would be studied and discussed in Iran," he said.

He added that all countries that support the anti-terror coalition led by Russia, which includes Iran, Syria and Iraq, can join the efforts to battle terrorism.

In an apparent jab at a US-led coalition against the Islamic State (IS), which has been striking the terror group's positions in Syria for over a year with little tangible results, Boroujerdi said countries that want to ostensibly fight terrorism with no true will must join the American coalition.

The true will to counter terrorism exists in Syria and Iraq, and the new coalition has results on the ground, he said.

Iran has emerged as a staunch regional ally of Syria in the country's long-lasting conflict.