Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast called a recent joint statement by the Arab League and the European Union on three Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf biased and inaccurate.
"The islands of Abu Musa, the Greater Tunb and the Lesser Tunb indisputably belong to the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said on Tuesday.
Mehman-Parast stated that biased and uninformed comments do not alter the incontrovertible fact about the Iranian islands, adding, "Such false claims and fueling rumors about the threat of (closing) the Strait of Hormuz… run contrary to the interests of regional nations and the global economy."
He went on to say that "sowing discord among regional countries, the meddling of foreign powers, militarism, and (the possibility) of an arms race starting are… the major threats to regional security and stability."
His remark came after the Arab League and the European Union in the final communiqué of their second foreign ministerial meeting in Cairo on November 13 supported UAE's false claims over the three Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf.
International documents clearly show that the three islands of the Greater Tunb, the Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa which were historically owned by Iran, temporarily fell to British control in 1903. The islands were returned to Iran based on an agreement in 1971 before the UAE was born.
Iran has repeatedly declared that its ownership of the three islands is unquestionable.
Under international law, no state can defy any agreement, which came into being before its establishment.
Yet, the UAE continues to make territorial claims against the Islamic Republic despite historical evidence and international regulations.
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The Iranian Foreign Ministry deplored the Arab League and the European Union's support for the territorial claims raised by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over the three Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf, and stressed the three islands are indispensible parts of the country forever.
News ID 183430
