Syria unrest embarrasses Iran

Syria, Iran's main Arab ally, has put Tehran in an uncomfortable position as it has reacted cautiously to a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests there in contrast to its sharp criticism of other Arab regimes.

Leaders in the Islamic republic firstly kept silent over the crisis in Syria, which has claimed hundreds of lives, before it tried to minimise the importance of events there.

Iran's hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said earlier this month that his country was not "interfering" in Syria.

"The government of Syria is our very good friend... so are the people of Syria... the government and the people of Syria can solve their issue through dialogue," he said at the time.

The unrest in Syria serves "the objective of the United States, its allies and the Zionist regime (Israel) to break the resistance's forefront," he added.

However, Ahmadinejad conceded that there is "no alternative but to accept the freedom of the people... and the vote of the majority in Syria and elsewhere."

Iran's conservative-dominated parliament, which is usually quick to take tough stances in foreign policy, has so far remained silent on the situation in Syria.

Events there have been covered by the media, which has stuck to reporting only factual developments.

Tehran's cautious stance with Syria is in contrast with its repeated verbal attacks against the repression of other popular movements sweeping the Arab world, including in Bahrain which is predominantly Shiite like Iran, but is ruled by Sunnis.

"Iran backs the Arab movement in other nations, but not the one in Syria because Syria is resisting Israel and it is in line with the Iranian foreign policies," Mohammad Saleh Sedghian, head of Tehran-based think-tank the Arab-Iranian Studies Centre, told AFP.
"Iran shapes its foreign policies with Arab nations based on the level of that nation's resistance against Israel," he added.

"Meanwhile, some elites have criticised of this differentiation, and Iranian officials have adopted a more balanced stance these days," Sedghian added.

The United States last week accused Iran of helping the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to crack down on the demonstrators, a charge Tehran vehemently denied as it indirectly criticised Damascus for the first time.

"We respect the sovereignty of other countries and we respect the demands of people. We consider as unacceptable the use of violence against the people of any country," foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said in response to the statement from Washington without directly referring to Damascus.

Though dominantly Sunni, Syria is ruled by the minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, and has been the main ally of Tehran in the Arab world since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Strategically, a weaker or changed regime in Syria "could have negative consequences for Iran," said Mehrdad Serjouie, an independent analyst in Tehran.

"Syria is Iran's connecting bridge to Hezbollah in Lebanon," which is vehemently backed by Tehran, and "Israel will gain the most from this disruption (of ties). The pressure lever on Israel will lessen," he added.

Amir Mohebian, director of Arya Strategic Studies, a moderate think-tank, said he believes that "given the anti-Israeli sentiment in the Arab revolts, (a victory of) democratic movement would not put Syria under the influence of Israel."

However he acknowledged that "Iranian support for the regime of President Assad may be perceived negatively by the Syrian opposition," and weigh on relations with Tehran if it came to power.

AFP