Iran scorns GCC-EU defense statement as ‘inappropriate interference’
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei on Tuesday strongly rejected claims made in a recent GCC-EU joint statement regarding Iran’s defense capabilities as an inappropriate and unacceptable interference in the country’s internal affairs.
Baqaei made the remarks after foreign ministers of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the European Union in a joint statement on Monday stressed the importance of what they called ensuring the peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear program, and ceasing of proliferation of ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles and any technologies that they claimed threaten the security of the region and beyond.
The Iranian official said those who turn the region into an arsenal of advanced, destructive weapons through arms deals worth hundreds of billions of dollars, while remaining silent toward the hegemony of a genocidal and aggressive regime or even providing it with military and political support, “have no authority to comment on Iran’s indigenous defense capabilities.”
The GCC-EU statement also repeated the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) baseless claims over the three Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf, expressing concern over the lack of progress about resolving the dispute between the UAE and Iran over the islands of Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa.
Baqaei reaffirmed Iran’s undisputed and permanent sovereignty over the islands, emphasizing that they are an integral part of Iran’s territory.
Repeating baseless claims in political statements holds no legal validity and cannot alter geographical realities or historical facts, he said.
The Persian Gulf islands of Abu Musa, and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs have historically been part of Iran, proof of which can be found and corroborated by countless historical, legal, and geographical documents in Iran and other parts of the world. However, the United Arab Emirates has repeatedly laid claim to the islands.
The Foreign Ministry spokesman also condemned Europe’s “destructive and divisive” interference in Iran’s defense and nuclear programs.