A senior Iranian official has called for a realistic approach in the Geneva II conference on Syria, saying the talks should not result in fueling extremism, PressTV reported.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks during a meeting with director of the North Africa and Middle East section of the French Foreign Ministry Jean-Francois Girault in Tehran on Saturday.
"Participants in the Geneva II conference should know that their decisions in the conference should not lead to strengthening extremist trends," Amir-Abdollahian said.
The conference could pave the way for a political solution if it adopts a realistic view towards the crisis in Syria, in which case "the Syrian people will be able to decide about the future of their country," through ballot boxes, said the Iranian diplomat.
Terrorists and Takfiri militants are "one of the realities of Syria's complex equation," he added.
Girault, for his part, said there is no military solution to the crisis, urging all states which can play a key role in ending the conflict to take part in the conference.
The Geneva II conference will kick off in the Swiss city of Montreux on January 22 and then move to the UN headquarters in Geneva on January 24 after a one-day break.
The talks are aimed at finding a political solution to the deadly crisis that has gripped Syria since 2011.
The United Nations says more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the turmoil.