UAE summons Iran’s diplomat over threats
UAE, ISRAEL OPEN PHONE LINK BETWEEN COUNTRIES
The UAE yesterday summoned the Iranian charge d’affaires in Abu Dhabi and handed him a strong note of protest against the threats contained in Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s speech regarding the UAE’s sovereign decisions.
Speeches of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the Revolutionary Guard and other officials in Iran, repeated the same threats.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation considered the speech unacceptable and inflammatory and had serious implications for security and stability in the Gulf region.
Responsibility to protect UAE mission in Tehran
The note handed by Khalifa Shaheen Al Marri, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation for Political Affairs to the Iranian diplomat warned of Iran’s responsibility to protect the UAE mission in Tehran and its diplomats in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations in the light of precedents of attacks on foreign diplomatic missions in Iran.
UAE rejects language of inflammatory speeches
The UAE affirmed its absolute rejection of the language of inflammatory speeches by Iranian authorities following the peace accord reached between the UAE, the US and Israel, considering this an interference in its internal affairs and an attack on its sovereignty, as opposed to the principles of international law governing relations between states, which is completely unacceptable. Furthermore, the UAE rejects Iranian statements that are not conducive to stability in the region, and considers that relations between states, agreements and accords are a sovereign issue.
Commitment to fulfil provisions of accord
Earlier, Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and Foreign Minister of Israel Gabi Ashkenazi yesterday inaugurated a phone link between the two countries. In a phone call, Shaikh Abdullah exchanged greetings with the Israeli minister on the announcement of the peace accord between the two countries signed on Thursday.
Shaikh Abdullah and Ashkenazi emphasised their commitment to fulfil the provisions of the peace accord between the two countries in order to promote peace and regional development.
Mauritania yesterday reaffirmed its support for UAE’s position favouring national, Arab and Muslim interests.
The Mauritanian News Agency quoted a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Mauritanians Abroad as saying that the country highlighted the UAE’s support for Palestine and the rights of the Palestinian people to establishing a state with Jerusalem as its capital.
“In recognition of the fraternal and historic ties between our country and the UAE, and based on our confidence in the wisdom of the UAE’s leadership and its significant sacrifices for Arab causes, especially the Palestinian cause, we stress that the UAE has full sovereignty and independence in managing its relations and stances guided by its national interests, as well as by Arab and Muslim interests and causes,” the statement said.
“We fully trust the leadership of the UAE and its understanding of the interests of the Arab region, as well as of the Palestinian people and their struggle under Israeli occupation and we are confident that it will take the necessary measures to ensure the welfare of Palestinians and their right to an independent country, with Jerusalem as its capital,” it added.
Lebanon keeps door open?
Meanwhile, Lebanese President Michel Aoun, ally of Israel’s arch-foe Hezbollah, seemed to leave the door open to eventual peace with the Jewish state, in an interview with French news channel BFMTV.
Lebanon has technically been at war with neighbouring Israel for decades, with tensions sporadically flaring in the border area in Lebanon’s south, stronghold of the militant Hezbollah movement.
Asked in an interview on BFMTV on Saturday whether Lebanon would be prepared to make peace with Israel, Aoun responded: “That depends. We have problems with Israel, we have to resolve them first.”
“It’s an independent country,” Aoun said of the UAE.
A key point of contention between Lebanon and Israel concerns oil and gas resources in the eastern Mediterranean, where both countries have sought bids for exploration in their exclusive economic zones.