Legal Experts Join Ministry to Reassert Iran’s Sovereignty Over Islands

Date: 02 September 2025 - 21:44

News ID: ۱۴۳۱۲۵

TEHRAN – Iran on Tuesday strongly rejected recent claims by the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) regarding the sovereignty of three Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf, calling the assertions “legally baseless” and “historically unfounded.”

In separate statements, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Iranian Bar Associations Union (ISBA) dismissed the GCC’s position—reiterated in its final communiqué following the 165th ministerial meeting in Kuwait—as a violation of international law and an affront to Iran’s territorial integrity.

The statements center on the Iranian islands of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb, and Lesser Tunb. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has long laid claim to the islands, with GCC support. Iran, however, insists its sovereignty over the territory is non-negotiable.

“The islands are an inseparable part of Iran’s territorial territory,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Tuesday. “Repetition of such baseless claims in political statements will not change the historical, legal, and geographical realities related to these islands.”

The ministry further warned that Iran “will take all necessary steps to protect its sovereignty and national interests” in the region.

In a parallel statement, the Iranian Bar Associations Union—a national legal body representing Iran’s legal community—condemned the GCC’s position as a “provocative and legally void attempt” to interfere in Iran’s internal affairs.

“These claims directly violate Article 2(7) of the United Nations Charter and contradict decades of documented historical fact and international legal precedent,” the ISBA said. It also noted that British colonial maps and documents from the 19th and 20th centuries consistently marked the islands as Iranian territory.

principles, including the International Court of Justice’s 1953 ruling in the Minquiers and Ecrehos case between the UK and France, which emphasized geographic proximity, continuous administration, and the absence of formal opposition as key criteria in territorial sovereignty.
Iran also rejected renewed GCC statements denying its rights to the Arash gas field—called Durra by Kuwait—describing the claims as one-sided and legally invalid.
Tehran called for dialogue over the shared maritime resources, while reaffirming that “territorial integrity is not subject to negotiation or political pressure.”