TEHRAN, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Top Iranian and Syrian military officials on Monday exchanged views here on bilateral defense cooperation and relations as well as the latest developments in Gaza, Iran's official news agency IRNA reported.
Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Mohammad Baqeri and Syrian Defense Minister Ali Mahmoud Abbas condemned the continuation of the Israeli "crimes" in Gaza and criticized the silence of some governments, the report said.
The two sides discussed the details and progress of bilateral military ties and cooperation, and expressed satisfaction with their growing trend, IRNA reported.
Baqeri and Abbas agreed that the Israeli attacks against the "oppressed" Palestinian people and airstrikes on Lebanon and Syria were proof of Israel's failure to achieve its objectives in Gaza, highlighting the necessity to hold constant consultations between Iranian and Syrian officials at different levels.
Abbas said that in the past 12 months, the Iranian and Syrian armed forces had achieved significant progress in bilateral relations and handled a large number of affairs through bilateral cooperation.
The Syrian defense minister on Saturday met his Iranian counterpart Mohammad-Reza Ashtiani and discussed bilateral and regional issues of common interest, according to the Iranian Students' News Agency. ■
