The assistant director general of the Persian Gulf Department of Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Saturday summoned the Russian charge d’affaires in Tehran in the absence of the Russian ambassador.
The Russian diplomat was notified of Iran’s strong protest at Moscow’s repeated support for the baseless claims made in a statement issued at the conclusion of the 6th conference of the Arab-Russian Cooperation Forum in Morocco.
In the meeting, the assistant director general of the Persian Gulf Department of Iran’s Foreign Ministry reminded Russia of the necessity of respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries as a recognized and basic principle of relations among world nations.
The Iranian official also reaffirmed Iran’s eternal sovereignty over the three islands in the Persian Gulf and stressed that the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran rejects any claim from any side in this regard as unacceptable, the Foreign Ministry’s website reported.
The Russian charge d’affaires said he would promptly convey Iran’s protest to his country’s officials.
In the final statement of the 6th Arab-Russian Cooperation Forum, held in the southern Moroccan city of Marrakech on December 20, the participants supported peaceful solutions and initiatives to resolve what they called the conflict on the three islands through bilateral negotiations or the International Court of Justice.
The Foreign Ministry of Iran has condemned the “baseless contents” of the statement, saying those three islands are an inseparable part of Iran’s national territory and will belong to Iran forever.