Ahmadinejad’s visit to the Iranian island of Abu Musa, Tehran

TEHRAN . An Iranian Foreign Ministry official has said that

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to the Iranian island of

Abu Musa, as part of a recent tour of the southern province of

Hormozgan, is an “internal Iranian affair.”

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who is the deputy foreign minister for

Arab and African affairs, made the remarks on Thursday in

response to UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed

al-Nahayan who said on Wednesday that Ahmadinejad’s visit “is

a flagrant violation of the United Arab Emirates’ sovereignty over

its territory and a transgression of efforts to find a peaceful

settlement to end Iranian occupation of the three UAE islands.”

The Iranian official also highlighted the importance of bilateral

talks meant to resolve the issue and said that the Islamic

Republic is determined to expand ties with the UAE.

According to Reuters, the UAE has recalled its ambassador to

Tehran for consultations after Ahmadinejad’s visit to the island.

The UAE has also cancelled a friendly match with Iran’s national

soccer team which was due to be held on Tuesday in the

Persian Gulf Arab state, the UAE Football Association said on its

website.

The UAE has repeatedly questioned Iran’s sovereignty over the

three Persian Gulf islands of Abu Musa and the Greater and

Lesser Tunbs and urged Tehran to agree to take the dispute to

the International Court of Justice in The Hague or engage in

direct negotiations.

Iran says its sovereignty over the islands is not negotiable but

has called for talks with the UAE to clear up misunderstandings.