No Syrian mediation in UAE islands' issue

Jeddah: Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah has denied reports that Syria is mediating to resolve the UAE's island issue with Iran.

He made the remarks at a press conference held here on Monday night at the end of the 107th Foreign Ministerial Meeting of GCC States. The council renewed its calls for returning the three islands of Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Mousa to the UAE.

"The foreign ministers supported UAE's right of sovereignty over the three islands and the territorial waters, airspace, continental shelf and economic zone of the three islands as an integral part of the United Arab Emirates," according to a statement issued at the end of the one-day meeting.

While regretting that contacts with Iran did not make any positive results in this respect, the council called for considering all peaceful means leading to the restoration of UAE's right over the islands.

It also urged Iran to help resolve the issue through either direct negotiations or international arbitration," Al Attiyah said quoting the statement.

Non-interference

Referring to UAE's move to appoint ambassador to Iraq, the Secretary-General said that any GCC State has sovereign right to take a decision regarding reopening of embassies or appointing ambassadors in the war-torn country.

The Ministerial Council called for the unity, sovereignty and independence of Iraq and non-interference in its internal affairs.

While stressing that need for maintaining the Arab and Islamic identity of Iraq, the council noted that achieving security and stability in Iraq requires a political and security address to the causes and roots of the crisis.

Al Attiyah asserted that Iran has the right to possess nuclear energy for peaceful purposes provided that it complies with the conditions of the international law and the International Nuclear Energy Agency.

He said the council renewed its call for resolving the dispute by peaceful means. "It also renewed its demand to make the Middle East, including the Gulf region, free from all weapons of mass destruction while recognising the right of countries in the region to possess expertise in the field of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

According to Al Attiyah, the council criticised the European Union's move to drag political matters into the ongoing negotiations to break the bottlenecks over the Free Trade Agreement.

"Political issues are being dragged into the negotiations on the part of EU that resulted in delaying signing of the accord. The EU, which entered into strategic alliance with Israel, is attempting to impose such a partnership on the GCC states also," he said while rejecting all possibilities for establishing relations with Israel until realising comprehensive and lasting peace in the region with the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and ending Israeli occupation.

Voicing displeasure over the EU move, Al Attiyah warned that we will decide either to sign the agreement or end the negotiations during the next meeting in September.

The Ministerial Council also expressed appreciation of the efforts made by Emir of Qatar Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, who is also Chairman of the Supreme Council for GCC, in bringing together of the Lebanese factions under "Doha agreement."