The United Nations' invitation to Iran to attend a crucial peace conference on Syria, January 22, has drawn objections from the United States and the opposition groups in Syria.
The United States and the opposition groups in Syria believe that Iran is helping Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with arms and weapons in the three-year long unrest. The two countries also blame Iran for not being supportive of a political transition in Syria that was agreed upon at an international conference in Geneva in June 2012. It is also known as the Geneva communiqué.
The Syrian National Coalition, the main political opposition in Syria, threatened to withdraw from the meeting if the invitation is not taken back. But the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that he had been assured by the Iranian officials that the country will play a "positive and constructive role" in forming a transitional body to govern Syria.
"The Syrian Coalition announces that they will withdraw their attendance in Geneva 2 unless Ban Ki-moon retracts Iran's invitation," the statement read in a Twitter post, quoting the National Coalition spokesman Louay Safi, reports Reuters. Anas al-Abdah, another senior Coalition member, told Al-Jazeera TV that he was "surprised" by the invitation to Iran. "It is illogical and we cannot in any way accept it."
Washington officials stressed that Iran should publicly accept the Geneva communiqué or else the invitation should be withdrawn. According to the U.S., acceptance of Geneva communiqué by Iran means al-Assad's stepping down from power and allowing a transitional governing body to take over.
"This is something Iran has never done publicly and something we have long made clear is required," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement. ""If Iran does not fully and publicly accept the Geneva communique, the invitation must be rescinded."
However, Ban ki-Moon and Lakhdar Brahimi, the UNs' special envoy to Syria, have been backing Iran's involvement.
The UN Secretary-General said that he spoke to Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif recently and that Tehran assured him that they will support the Geneva 2012 plan.
"He has assured me that like all the other countries invited to the opening day discussions in Montreux, Iran understands that the basis of the talks is the full implementation of the 30 June, 2012, Geneva communique," he said, reported The New York Times.
"Foreign Minister Zarif and I agreed that the goal of the negotiations is to establish by mutual consent a transitional governing body with a full executive powers," ki-Moon said. "It was on that basis that Foreign Minister Zarif pledged that Iran would play a positive and constructive role in Montreux." "Therefore as convener and host of the conference I have decided to issue an invitation to Iran to participate," Ban said. "Iran needs to participate as one of the important neighboring countries."
He also said that he expected a response to the invitation from Iran soon.
