Iran Intends to Inaugurate Fifth University in Syria

 Iranian and Afghan boys study in a classroom at the Be'sat school in Kerman, Iran, October 23, 2016. (REUTERS/Gabriela Baczynska)
Iranian and Afghan boys study in a classroom at the Be'sat school in Kerman, Iran, October 23, 2016. (REUTERS/Gabriela Baczynska)
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Iran Intends to Inaugurate Fifth University in Syria

 Iranian and Afghan boys study in a classroom at the Be'sat school in Kerman, Iran, October 23, 2016. (REUTERS/Gabriela Baczynska)
Iranian and Afghan boys study in a classroom at the Be'sat school in Kerman, Iran, October 23, 2016. (REUTERS/Gabriela Baczynska)

Iran is planning to inaugurate the fifth Iranian university in Syria, revealed Mansour Gholami, Iran’s science, research and technology minister.

“The planned establishment of the Tarbiat Modares University in Syria aims to provide education for Syrian students in their own country,” Iran’s IRNA news agency quoted Gholami as saying.

The university will provide an opportunity for Syrian students to complete their graduate and post-graduate studies, according to Gholami. "We’re hoping to receive a larger number of students," the minister said.

Iran exerts restless efforts to spread the Iranian ideology in Syria through schools and Persian language teaching centers. The past years have witnessed the opening of several schools in Damascus, Lattakia, Deir Ezzor, and Boukamal.

Iran has allocated monthly salaries for students of its Islamic schools, amounting to SYP10,000 (USD20) – this is considered a high salary for poor Syrian children. Iran’s endeavors to infiltrate inside the Syrian community where it has military dominance have expanded towards regions considered anti-regime such as Hama.

Unprecedentedly, the University of Hama has announced signing three agreements of scientific cooperation with three Iranian universities (Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Amirkabir University of Technology and Al-Zahra College for Women.)



Russian Duma Speaker Volodin Meets North Korea’s Kim in Pyongyang

This picture taken on August 14, 2025 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 15, 2025 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (center R) waving as chairman of the Russia's State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin (center L), looks on as they attend a convention celebrating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Korea from Japan colonial rule in Pyongyang. (KCNA via KNS / AFP)
This picture taken on August 14, 2025 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 15, 2025 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (center R) waving as chairman of the Russia's State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin (center L), looks on as they attend a convention celebrating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Korea from Japan colonial rule in Pyongyang. (KCNA via KNS / AFP)
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Russian Duma Speaker Volodin Meets North Korea’s Kim in Pyongyang

This picture taken on August 14, 2025 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 15, 2025 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (center R) waving as chairman of the Russia's State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin (center L), looks on as they attend a convention celebrating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Korea from Japan colonial rule in Pyongyang. (KCNA via KNS / AFP)
This picture taken on August 14, 2025 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 15, 2025 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (center R) waving as chairman of the Russia's State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin (center L), looks on as they attend a convention celebrating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Korea from Japan colonial rule in Pyongyang. (KCNA via KNS / AFP)

Russian State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during an official visit to Pyongyang, the Russian parliament said on Thursday.

Volodin, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, conveyed greetings from the Russian leader and thanked Kim for North Korea's support of Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.

Putin held a phone call with Kim on Tuesday and updated him on planned talks with US President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday.

Kim sent a reply to a letter from Putin that was delivered by Volodin to celebrate the 80th anniversary of liberation from Japan's colonial rule, North Korea's state news agency KCNA reported on Friday.

In the letter to Putin, Kim said the soldiers of North Korea and Russia formed "friendship and unity" in the battlefield to fight against "a mutual enemy" which he didn't identify, according to KCNA.

Pyongyang and Moscow have both confirmed the deployment of North Korean troops to support Russia's offensive against Ukraine to reclaim the Kursk region.

South Korea's intelligence agency said in June that North Korea was potentially ready to send more troops to Russia.