Foreign troops entering Syria would return ‘in coffins’

But al-Moallem warned that Saudi or other foreign troops entering his country would “return home in wooden coffins”, a line he repeated three times during the one-hour press conference.

A top Iranian military commander says a “definite” defeat awaits Saudi Arabia if it sends troops to Syria.

Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem meanwhile said government forces were “on track to end the conflict” following the recent gains around Aleppo.

Saudi Arabia is ready to join any ground operation the US-led coalition against the militant Islamic State group in Syria might decide on.

Rezaei said such a deployment would set the stage for a confrontation between Russian Federation and Syria on one side, and Saudi Arabia and Turkey on the other, a situation which could also drag the USA into the conflict and trigger an all-out regional war.

Turkey has long had a military presence inside both Iraq and Syria, fighting IS while avoiding open confrontation with Assad’s forces, in spite of any desire to be rid of the Syrian regime, and in the face of hundreds of thousands of refugees flooding over its border.

“In such a situation, the clash of Russia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Syria together, and then the entrance of America… eventually a large regional war is possible”, the official IRNA news agency quoted him as saying. The offensive appeared aimed at encircling strongholds rebels have held in the city since 2012.

The fate of Saudi-backed Syrian armed opposition groups fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad is also a major concern for the kingdom.

“We welcome the announcement by Saudi Arabia that they are looking into ways to enhance their counter-ISIL efforts”, US Central Command spokesman Pat Ryder said, using an alternative acronym for ISIS.

‘The establishment of a joint (Gulf Arab) force shows clearly and unequivocally that under the leadership of Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states are determined to take positive action within the region and globally to combat terrorism and extremism, from whatever quarter they emanate, ‘ he said.

The advance of Syrian troops and the blistering Russian airstrikes in Aleppo and elsewhere led to the breakdown of indirect peace talks launched earlier this week in Geneva, with the opposition saying there was no point in negotiating under fire.

The head of Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said on Saturday that Riyadh lacked the courage to make such a move and that if they did go ahead their forces would be destroyed.

Iran has been a key ally of Syria’s throughout the five-year uprising.