Iran Denounces ‘Shortsighted’ Arab Summit
TEHRAN (Dispatches) – Iran on Wednesday denounced "baseless allegations” leveled against Tehran at a summit of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Riyadh.
The GCC released the statement on Tuesday at the end of its 40th summit, urging a united front against Iran, calling for global action its nuclear energy program, and making claims to three Iranian islands in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
"The repetition of groundless allegations in that statement results from the political pressures from a few members of the Council, which have made every effort during the past couple of decades to prevent the promotion of multilateral cooperation,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said.
"With their shortsightedness throughout these years, not only have they allowed for plundering the neighboring countries’ wealth, but they have also paved the way for further outside interference in this sensitive region,” he said.
Mousavi said some GCC members are willing to ruin opportunities for cooperation, offered by Iran in order to restore security and peace to the region. He cited Iran’s offer for a non-aggression pact, a regional dialogue forum, and ultimately its Hormuz peace initiative among them.
He said "a few countries following unwise policies in the region should explain to the regional public opinion what measures they have taken to reduce tensions other than creating and strengthening terrorist and Takfiri groups in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, or allowing outsiders to the Persian Gulf”.
"The countries whose irresponsible intervention in other countries has led to the massacre of innocent citizens, from women and children to the elderly, and resulted in the spread of insecurity and terrorism in the region, are attempting to evade the consequences,” Mousavi added.
The spokesperson further underlined that the three Iranian islands of the Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa are an indispensable and eternal parts of the Iran, adding Tehran views any claims to islands as tantamount to meddling in its internal affairs and encroachment on its territorial boundaries.
"All activities by the Islamic Republic of Iran on the
islands have been always in line with the country’s inalienable rights and in compliance with its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he stated.
Mousavi also hit out at the GCC’s reaction to Iran’s decision to scale back its commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), saying it was ironical "the countries that invested all their efforts and capital to wreck the JCPOA are now opposing Iran’s legitimate measures”.
The spokesperson also strongly condemned the GCC’s "brazen support for the U.S. economic terrorism against the great Iranian nation”, saying it runs counter to the policy of good-neighborliness.
"Many of the bogus and repetitious claims in that statement do not merit a response,” Mousavi said.
He further voiced hope that the GCC members would change their policies to cooperation instead of making provocative remarks which drive the region into a gloomy future.
The GCC released the statement on Tuesday at the end of its 40th summit, urging a united front against Iran, calling for global action its nuclear energy program, and making claims to three Iranian islands in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
"The repetition of groundless allegations in that statement results from the political pressures from a few members of the Council, which have made every effort during the past couple of decades to prevent the promotion of multilateral cooperation,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said.
"With their shortsightedness throughout these years, not only have they allowed for plundering the neighboring countries’ wealth, but they have also paved the way for further outside interference in this sensitive region,” he said.
Mousavi said some GCC members are willing to ruin opportunities for cooperation, offered by Iran in order to restore security and peace to the region. He cited Iran’s offer for a non-aggression pact, a regional dialogue forum, and ultimately its Hormuz peace initiative among them.
He said "a few countries following unwise policies in the region should explain to the regional public opinion what measures they have taken to reduce tensions other than creating and strengthening terrorist and Takfiri groups in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, or allowing outsiders to the Persian Gulf”.
"The countries whose irresponsible intervention in other countries has led to the massacre of innocent citizens, from women and children to the elderly, and resulted in the spread of insecurity and terrorism in the region, are attempting to evade the consequences,” Mousavi added.
The spokesperson further underlined that the three Iranian islands of the Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa are an indispensable and eternal parts of the Iran, adding Tehran views any claims to islands as tantamount to meddling in its internal affairs and encroachment on its territorial boundaries.
"All activities by the Islamic Republic of Iran on the
islands have been always in line with the country’s inalienable rights and in compliance with its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he stated.
Mousavi also hit out at the GCC’s reaction to Iran’s decision to scale back its commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), saying it was ironical "the countries that invested all their efforts and capital to wreck the JCPOA are now opposing Iran’s legitimate measures”.
The spokesperson also strongly condemned the GCC’s "brazen support for the U.S. economic terrorism against the great Iranian nation”, saying it runs counter to the policy of good-neighborliness.
"Many of the bogus and repetitious claims in that statement do not merit a response,” Mousavi said.
He further voiced hope that the GCC members would change their policies to cooperation instead of making provocative remarks which drive the region into a gloomy future.