Iranian President cancels visit to Turkey

Iranian President cancels visit to Turkey

PanARMENIAN.Net - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who was scheduled to visit Turkey on the invitation of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday, Dec 17, has canceled his visit at a time when Iran's top military commander has warned Turkey that the deployment of Patriot anti-missile batteries along Turkey's border with Syria will set the stage for world war.

According to Today's Zaman, a Turkish diplomatic official who spoke on the condition of anonymity confirmed the cancellation of the Iranian president's visit to Turkey, citing an unexpected item that has arisen on Ahmadinejad's agenda.

Iranian Maj. Gen. Hassan Firouzabadi, whose remarks came after the Pentagon announced it would send two Patriot missile batteries and 400 troops to Turkey as part of a larger NATO force to protect Turkish territory from potential Syrian missile attacks, called on the Western military alliance to reverse its decision to deploy the defense system, saying such a move risks conflict with Syria.

Firouzabadi said the Patriot deployment aims to protect Israel from Iranian missile attacks and to inhibit a potential Russian military defense of Syria. Firouzabadi maintained that Western countries where designing a world war when they approved the deployment of Patriots along the Syrian-Turkish border.

“Each one of these Patriots is a black mark on the world map, and is meant to cause a world war,” Firouzabadi said, according to the Iranian Students News Agency. “They are making plans for a world war and this is very dangerous for the future of humanity and for the future of Europe itself,” he said, adding that Turkey, the US and European states should dismantle the Patriots and take them away from the region before shots are fired.

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