Iran, Russia to continue to protect Syria: Official

AVA- Velayati made the remarks in Moscow Friday amid reports that Iran's role in Syria will be a key item at a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump in Helsinki on Monday. 
Tel Aviv regime Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Putin in Moscow Wednesday, saying after the meeting, “Our opinion is known that Iran needs to leave Syria.”    
Velayati said Iran and Russia's presence in Syria will continue to protect the country against terrorist groups and America's aggression.
They "will immediately leave if Iraqi and Syrian governments want it, not because of Israel and America's pressure," he added.  
Velayati touched on the objectives of the Zionist leader's visit to Moscow where he "repeated his delusional and threadbare accusations against Iran," state news agency IRNA reported. 
"The process of developing relations between Iran and Russia is not one-sided and therefore, the irrelevant, meaningless and interventionist claims made by Netanyahu do not affect Iran-Russia relations," he said.
Velayati, the Leader's adviser on international affairs, traveled to Moscow on Wednesday to convey a message from Imam Khamenei and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's written letter to President Putin.
"It can be said that the sending of the important and strategic message of the Supreme Leader, as well as the message of the president and long talks with Putin were a turning point in the relations between Iran and Russia," he said.
Velayati said it was agreed that the decisions of the meeting be followed up and pursued effectively by the authorities of the two countries and reported to Imam Khamenei and Presidents Putin and Rouhani so that any problem could be solved with the order of top officials. 
Velayati described his Thursday meeting with Putin ahead of the Trump-Putin summit as "very decisive."