Some western, Arab states playing foul in Mideast

SHAFAQNA - Iranian Deputy FM Amir-Abdollahian says the dialog between some western countries and regional states are aimed at fueling conflicts in the region.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks in an interview to state television on Monday, saying some parties to the regional negotiations are striving to further intensify conflicts in the region by ‘foul play’ and ‘counterproductive behaviour.’

On the objectives of some countries’ visit, especially the US, to the Persian Gulf states, the Iranian diplomat said, “we consider the visits, dialogs and interactions of the countries as a positive matter, but foreign interference in regional affairs is wrong and counterproductive.”

He expressed lament over the unseemly moves by some regional countries in making false allegations in order to escalate tensions in the region, adding “one such state on the eve of Mr. Zarif’s regional tour, launched a completely baseless propaganda claiming weapons had been smuggled from Iran to Bahrain; we strongly rejected the claim.”

Amir-Abdollahian deemed Saudi Arabia’s military aggression against Yemen a ‘strategic mistake,’ saying “during the talks I had with the Saudi foreign minister on the sidelines of the recent OIC ministerial meeting in Jeddah, I explicitly told him that the Saudi aggression against Yemen was a serious and strategic mistake, further complicating the security issues in the region.”

Amir-Abdollahian further stressed that the Islamic Republic’s support for Yemen was in line with promoting peace, stability and security in the region, calling on the Saudi regime to immediately cease its military aggression against Yemen.