Tehran, Nov 23 (IANS): Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has urged western countries to lift sanctions against Syria.

The Minister made the remarks on Sunday during a meeting with visiting UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen in Tehran.

"All unjust and illegal sanctions against the Syrian government and people must be lifted, particularly under the current conditions caused by the coronavirus pandemic," Xinhua news agency quoted Zarif as saying.

He criticized some western countries for what he called "obstructing" political process for crisis management in the Arab country.

"In recent years, good opportunities have arisen to end the crisis" in Syria, but they have been squandered by some states, Zarif was quoted as saying.

For his part, Pedersen stressed Iran's important role in a peaceful settlement of crisis in Syria.

Over the past years, the US and European Union have imposed several rounds of sanctions on Syria.