Tehran, IRNA – The director-general for the Persian Gulf affairs at the Iranian Foreign Ministry has summoned Russia’s Ambassador in Tehran Alexey Dedov to protest against a statement issued by Moscow and Arab countries of the Persian Gulf that allegedly disputed Iran's sovereignty over three islands in the region.

Ali Reza Enayati urged the Russian ambassador on Wednesday to correct the stance adopted about the Iranian islands at the end of the sixth joint ministerial meeting of the strategic dialogue between the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Russian Federation in Moscow.

The three Persian Gulf islands of Abu Musa, the Greater Tunb, and the Lesser Tunb belong to Iran forever, Enayati stressed.

For his part, the Russian ambassador underlined the importance of respecting Iran’s territorial integrity, announcing that he will report the issue to Moscow as soon as possible.

The participating countries in the (P)GCC meeting on Monday (July 10), issued a joint statement in part of which the false claim about the Iranian islands was repeated.

A day after the statement, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said, the three islands belong to Iran forever, adding that such statements are against Iran’s friendly relations with its neighbors.

1483**9417**4261