Vladimir Putin’s special envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, announced that despite the recognition of Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights by the United States, Iranian forces have kept a distance of 80 km from this area.

Regarding the position of Iranian forces on the Syrian border, Alexander Lavrentiev said: “We have reached an agreement with our Iranian friends to transfer their forces to 75 to 80 kilometers from the Syrian border to ensure the security of the southern region. They are loyal to the agreement.”

While Israel had expressed concerns over the presence of Iranian forces near the Israeli border, last July Iran agreed to Russia’s request to pull back its forces to 85 km away from the border.

However, after the recognition of Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights by President Trump, there was the possibility of Tehran changing its mind and get closer to the disputed region.

Israel has repeatedly accused Iran of using the Syrian soil for attacks against Israel’s national interests.

Iran denies this claim and says its presence in Syria is only in a consultant capacity and to fight against terrorism.

Regarding the issue of foreign forces leaving Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev said that plans to form an international committee to facilitate this issue are in place, but the stability of Syria must be the priority.

He continued: For all the foreign forces to leave Syria, we need a strong and stable Syria with all the terrorist groups annihilated.

While Russia emphasizes on eliminating all the opposition groups in the country, the Human Rights Watch in Syria reported on Friday that the attacks of Russian airforce against a Jihadist base in Idlib left 10 civilians dead, including two children.