Abdollahian, quoted by state television
... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
, denied that his country had fighters on the ground in the Syrian conflict.
"We have military advisers in Iraq and Syria at the request of the governments of the two countries ... We are going to step up our aid to Syria in the form of advice on the fight against terrorism," he said.
On Friday, a U.S. official said as many as 2,000 fighters from Iran and its regional allies were supporting Syrian army's offensives against rebels in coordination with Russia.
Iran is a key ally of
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad
Horror of Homs...
and has stood by since an uprising against his regime broke out in 2011.
A senior Iranian official said Thursday on a visit to Syria that Tehran would consider sending fighters if Damascus requested them.
"If Syria makes a request (for Iranian forces), we will study the request and make a decision," said Alaedin Boroujerdi, chairman of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee.