Pak Sahafat – Referring to Iran’s vital role in supporting Bashar al-Assad‘s government and the failure of a decade of Western bellicose policies in Syria, the former British ambassador in Damascus stated that the Iranian president’s visit to Damascus is an important event and indicates the victory of Iran’s policy in the region.
Peter Ford, who was in charge of the British Embassy in Damascus from 2003 to 2006 on behalf of Tony Blair’s government, said in an interview with reporter in London on Friday: Syria is emerging victoriously. Of course, this country has been damaged after years of war that the West launched to change the political system in Damascus and the sanctions it imposed; but now it is emerging again with territorial, political and civil integrity.
In this connection, he pointed to the role of Iran and Russia in supporting Syria against the illegal actions of the West and said: I am sure that if it were not for Tehran and Moscow, the Western powers would have overthrown the Syrian government.
This former British diplomat said in response to a question about the change of position and tendency of some Arab countries towards Syria: During my time in Syria, I realized that the people of this country are tolerant and don’t look for immediate results like we do in the West. They look at the horizon of issues and are patient. We used to call the Syrians single-minded and stubborn people, but I think they are smarter than us and they were patient during this time.
Referring to the recent visit of the foreign minister of Saudi Arabia to Damascus, he said that this development occurred while Syria did not change its positions, but the Arab countries realized that working with the American government to overthrow the Syrian government was not wise, it was to their own detriment and It won’t work; So they decided to be realistic and repair their relations with Damascus.
Ford continued: They also came to the conclusion that they have no desire for improper relations with Iran and had acted in line with the interests of the United States and Israel so far. It was for this reason that we witnessed important developments in the relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
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In response to the question of whether the regional developments will have an impact on the West’s position towards Syria, and for example, we can expect the resumption of relations and the reopening of the Damascus embassy in Europe, the former British diplomat said: To be honest, no. We are not optimistic about such a development, at least until the London regime changes in the general elections (next year), and I consider the prospect of reopening the Syrian embassy unlikely.
He described the British as stubborn people in political matters who follow American positions and policies. Ford continued: If the West wanted to behave logically and realistically, it should have revised its positions towards Syria. This retired British diplomat stated that the American and European project in Syria has failed and added: The West must end the policy of changing the political system in Damascus, follow the path of Saudi Arabia, behave realistically and reopen its embassy in Damascus.
He added: But it is unlikely that they will do such a thing, and they will probably continue with their imperialist policies, which are doomed to failure.
In another part of this interview, Ford discussed the importance of the presidential visit of the President of Iran to Syria and said: I think this trip is very important. This is the first visit of an Iranian president to Syria since 2010 and is considered a historic event.
He described this trip as a sign of the victory of Iran’s policy in the region and said; Supporting Syria imposed a heavy cost on Tehran, but Iran was able to overcome the difficulties and “now it can be proud of itself for such an important achievement. The former British diplomat considered this trip, along with the Iran-Arab agreement, an important step in reducing tensions in the region and for the benefit of West Asian countries.
In response to this question, what is the view of America and Europe on the Iranian president’s visit, Ford said that the West has remained silent in this regard “because it does not know what to say. In fact, they want to protest, but they are confused.”
He added: I think they are ashamed that Iran helped Syria to re-emerge. Referring to the importance of Iran’s role in regional equations and the decline of Washington’s influence, the former British diplomat clarified that the West has nothing more to say.