Senior Russian Diplomat, Iranian Ambassador Discuss Issue Of Arabian Gulf Islands - Moscow

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov and Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali discussed on Friday the recent statement by Moscow and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) about three Arabian Gulf islands, whose territorial affiliation to Iran has been long disputed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Frida

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th July, 2023) Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov and Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali discussed on Friday the recent statement by Moscow and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) about three Arabian Gulf islands, whose territorial affiliation to Iran has been long disputed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

Following the sixth joint ministerial meeting of strategic dialogue on July 10, Russia and the GCC issued a joint statement in which they called for a peaceful solution to the territorial dispute over the three islands � Abu Musa, Greater Tunb and Lesser Tunb � through bilateral negotiations between Tehran and Abu Dhabi or through the International Court of Justice. On Wednesday, the Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned Russian Ambassador to Tehran Alexey Dedov and expressed objections to the contents of the statement.

"During the talks, the parties discussed topical issues of further enhancing coordination of general approaches of Moscow and Tehran on the Middle East issues of mutual interest, including taking into account the outcomes of the sixth joint ministerial meeting of the Russia-GCC Strategic Dialogue," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The Iranian Embassy in Moscow, for its part, said that during the meeting, the Russian side expressed its respect for Iran's territorial integrity and sovereignty and emphasized the friendly character of bilateral relations.

The three islands are located in the Strait of Hormuz between the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Both Iran and the UAE claim ownership of them, however, they have been held by Iran since 1971 after the Imperial Iranian Navy seized control of them following the withdrawal of UK forces from the islands.

The UAE has since made several attempts through international channels to regain sovereign control of the islands. In particular, in 1980, Abu Dhabi took its claim to the United Nations, but it was rejected by the UN Security Council, and the case was closed.