Gulf ambassadors’ return ‘linked to Iran’s attitudes’

Manama: The reinstatement of the Gulf ambassadors in Tehran is linked to Iran changing its policy in the region, a senior Kuwaiti official has said.

“We look forward to the ambassadors of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) returning to their posts in Tehran,” Khalid Al Jarallah, the deputy foreign minister, said. “However, this matter is directly linked to Iran’s policy in the region and its commitment to the essential principles of the United Nations Charter with regards to the non-interference in the domestic affairs of other countries and the respect of their sovereignty,” Al Jarallah told the media on the sideline of a Ramadan banquet hosted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Shaikh Sabah Khalid Al Hamad Al Sabah, Kuwaiti media reported on Wednesday.

Relations between the GCC, an alliance of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, plummeted dramatically in January after mobs attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran and General Consulate in Mashhad.

Saudi Arabia and Bahrain cut off the diplomatic ties and Kuwait and the UAE downgraded their relations to protest against the attacks and Iranian interference in the domestic affairs of Gulf and Arab countries.

The Gulf countries have often said they wanted Iran to cease its antagonism and end its interference in their affairs in order to build stronger ties with benefits for all the people in a region that has long suffered from wars and conflicts.