Israel sole inherent crisis in West Asia: Iran official

The Israeli regime is the sole inherent crisis in West Asia and all other crises in the region are bogus, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) says.

The existing artificial crises are an outcome of the goals and policies of extra-regional powers in order to cover up the main crisis and drain the capacities to counter the Israeli regime through starting arms race and conflicts in Muslim countries, Ali Shamkhani said in an address to the International Conference on Regional Security Order in West Asia in Tehran on Sunday.

“There is no sustainable military solution to regional crises,” he added, emphasizing that the achievement of a resounding victory or defeat in the current military conflicts should not lead to the illusion of the predominance of the military approach over dialogue-based solutions.

The SNSC secretary also called for efforts to establish a regional power balance through mutual solidarity between countries in political, economic, security and cultural sectors, saying that the Islamic Republic’s security doctrine is based on soft power, because Iran seeks to pursue conventional deterrence in the defense sector.

Shamkhani also stated that terrorism is the common threat to all countries in the world, adding that the “use of terrorism as a means” for political aims and its attribution to Islam with the purpose of spreading Islamophobia and sowing discord among Muslims have created a “complicated” situation in the region, which would only serve the Israeli regime’s interests.

Zionist regime at odds with regional peace: Dehqan 

Also addressing the Tehran Security Conference on Sunday, Iran's Defense Minister Hossein Dehqan noted that under present circumstances, security is the main concern of countries in the Middle East region, adding that the correct understanding of international environment and management of the existing conflicts are among the requisites for the establishment of collective security in the region. 

Elsewhere in his remarks, he added that the Middle East region has not seen peace since the creation of the fake Zionist regime in the occupied lands, which has been the source of a continued crisis across the region.

The Iranian minister then elaborated on the main challenges facing regional countries for the establishment of peace and security, noting that Middle Eastern states are currently facing four challenges in this regard.

Dehqan mentioned inefficiency of national governments for establishment of security within their borders; emergence of extremist and violent groups and currents across the region; interventionist policies followed by some regional powers, including Saudi Arabia, to stoke unrest and chaos in regional countries; and interventions by Western powers, especially the United States, as the main challenges that currently bar establishment of peace and security in the restive region of Middle East.

He added that Iran is among those countries which seek stability and security in the West Asia region through basic reforms and aim to create an Islamic and anti-West order.

“This order will be against the West’s intervention in the management of regional disputes and demands respect for integrity and national sovereignty of countries. This order will also isolate Israel in the region while greatly bolstering the resistance front, and seeks to improve relations among regional countries through a stabilizing and security-building approach,” Dehqan said.

The Iranian minister added that to achieve this goal, countries must take a “security-oriented” approach to regional issues in the coming years, which must also include attention to economic issues.

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