Iran had received a message from the US government in the days after the September 11 terror attacks in New York and Washington, an official told AFP on Saturday.
Foreign ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi said the message touched on ties between Tehran and Washington, who have not had diplomatic relations since April 1980.
The message was sent via the usual channel of the embassy of Switzerland, which represents US interests in the Islamic republic, he said without giving further details.
Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi and his Syrian counterpart, Farouq Al Shara have dismissed any link between the Middle East crisis and the last week's terrorist attacks on the
United States, the foreign ministry announced Friday.
During a telephone conversation on Friday, Kharrazi and Shara reiterated, "One should not link the (current) Middle East event, which is resistance against occupation to the recent terrorist attacks on the United States," the ministry said in a statement, cited by the official Iranian news agency (IRNA).
They noted that linking Islamic and terrorism would result in the "clash of civilizations."
The two ministers raised concern over the possible punishing assault by the US on Afghanistan, which, they said, might infringe the innocent civilians in Iran's neighbor.
Leading Iranian officials have condemned the devastating attacks on the US and expressed sympathy with families of victims, in moves unprecedented since the 1979 Islamic revolution which led to a break in diplomatic ties – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
