Iran must solve islands issue

Dubai: Tehran must respond to calls from Gulf Cooperation Council members to submit the issue of the UAE's occupied islands to international arbitration, the Secretary-General of the GCC said on Monday.

In an exclusive interview with Gulf News, Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah said he hoped Iran would reciprocate to the "sincere" calls of the UAE and GCC to refer the border dispute to the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

The dispute over the occupied islands of Abu Mousa, Greater Tunb and Lesser Tunb resurfaced recently with Tehran's decision to open two offices on Abu Mousa.

The UAE has protested the move and is calling for its reversal. GCC foreign ministers also condemned the Iranian move, and Arab organisations are supporting UAE's stand.

Iran, however, rejects the protests and describes them as "interference" in its internal affairs.

"Undoubtedly, the issue of the three [UAE islands occupied by Iran] constitute an obstacle in the way to improving the bilateral relations between the GCC and Iran," Al Attiyah said. "The GCC wants to develop relations with Iran and move to a broader horizon."

Al Attiyah, however, remained adamant that the GCC does not want to be dragged into any potential conflict between Iran and the West.

Refusal

Al Attiyah said he rejected the military option to solve the dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme, and added the GCC countries also refuse to be pushed into the middle of any Iranian-Western dispute.

He said the dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme and uranium enrichment efforts must be resolved peacefully, adding he "rejects all non-peaceful options". Stability in the region, he said, is vital for all.

"GCC relations are governed by the interests of the region's countries and peoples, and our keenness to stabilise the region," Al Attiyah said.

With some reports speculating about a military strike against Iran in concert with the US presidential election in November, Al Attiyah said relations between the GCC and Washington have been close for a long time despite changes in the US leadership.

"These relations are governed by mutual interests and the recognition of the necessity of securing stability in the region," he said.

He declined to comment on the US-Iraq security agreement, noting "this is an internal affair and what we are looking for is to preserve the unity of Iraq, its sovereignty and security."

Money union: Centsible?

Get ready to deal in GCC cents. When members of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council meets in Muscat in November, the first order of business will be to agree to a monetary union, the precursor to a GCC central bank.

GCC Secretary-General Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah told Gulf News the final details are being worked out by the central banks.