Iran Dismisses Final Statement:

Arab League Summit Held Under Saudi ‘Dark Shadow’

Date: 16 April 2018 - 22:04

News ID: ۵۱۸۵۴

TEHRAN (Dispatches) – Iran has blasted the final statement of the Arab League summit, rejecting allegations made against the Islamic Republic and reiterating Tehran’s s principled policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries.
"As in previous statements, once again baseless allegations and false claims have been made against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said.
He said the statement issued at the end of the Arab League summit in the Saudi city of Dhahran had ignored the facts on the ground and failed to identify the exact causes of the regional crises.
"There were high expectations that the meeting would take a positive step towards regional convergence in identifying the key factors of restoring stability and peace to the region, apart from adoption of repetitive double standards,” Qasemi said.
"However, the dark shadow of the Saudis’ destructive policies is evident over the final statement of the summit,” he added.
Qasemi further emphasized that the Iranian islands of the Greater and Lesser Tunbs, and Abu Musa are an inseparable part of the country.
He also dismissed "baseless, useless and essentially false claims” by some southern neighbors of Iran and their creation of fake names for the Iranian islands.
Such claims are outdated and ineffective and amount to interference in Iran’s internal affairs, he added.
"It is a pity that some of the member states of the Arab League ignore the historical and geographical realities and disregard the sovereignty of their neighbors,” he said, adding they do not follow a rational policy based on good neighborliness.
Qasemi went on to say that by misrepresenting certain historical realities, the countries in question waste the capacities and potentialities of the Arab and Muslim countries to resolve the regional crises by making such allegations and futile efforts.
"Tehran’s principled policy has always been based on maintaining more convergence and mutual respect for the sovereignty of other countries, especially the neighbors, and the observance of good neighborliness,” he said.
In the same breath, he added, Iran expects regional countries not to make false allegations, show mutual respect, and not interfere in each other’s affairs.
Moreover, Qasemi called on the Arab League member states to take necessary measures to build confidence and promote stability in the region. He also urged them to base their policies upon realism, interaction, contemplation, logic, dialogue, goodwill and far-sightedness.
The Arab League summit’s final communique called for more international sanctions on Iran and urged it to withdraw "its militias” from Syria and Yemen.
"The summit condemned Iranian interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries, either through igniting sectarian strife or planting militias in Arab countries such as Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen, and harboring al Qaeda terrorists,” Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir told a news conference.
Iran has repeatedly denied such accusations.