UAE calls on Iran to return occupied islands

UAE’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, said that the UAE has unwavering faith in the role of the United Nations and its organs, especially the UN Security Council, in maintaining international peace and security.

In his statement at the General Debate of the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York, Sheikh Abdullah said, “Our region, which suffers from serious crises and conflicts, urgently needs a more effective method to confront these crises and disputes based on deep-rooted solutions backed by the international community.”

The minister called on Iran to return the occupied UAE islands to ensure a stable and friendly environment in the region. “The crises of our region should not distract us from our core national issue which is the sovereignty of the UAE over its three islands: Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa, which are occupied by Iran against the provisions of international law and the Charter of the United Nations. My country has called, and continues to call on, our neighbour Iran, to return the occupied islands to their rightful owners either voluntarily or through peaceful means, particularly through international justice or arbitration, in order to maintain friendly relations and good neighbourliness in the Arabian Gulf region,” he said.

“We also affirm that my country will never give up its sovereign right over these islands, and this approach emphasises the UAE’s insistence on the principles of international law,” Sheikh Abdullah stressed.