Kuwait Welcomes Dialogue with Iran to Ensure Regional Stability

EghtesadOnline: Kuwait is willing to cooperate with Iran for the benefit of the region's security and stability, the Arab state's crown prince said while hosting Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Sunday.

News ID: ۷۴۸۲۲۰

19 August 2019

"We are always ready for cooperation and dialogue, and believe it is beneficial for the region and its security and stability," Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah added, noting that the region’s interests are of the highest priority, ISNA reported.

Sheikh Nawaf was receiving Zarif in place of Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah who could not attend the meeting due to illness.

Zarif, who had arrived in Kuwait on Saturday, described Iran's relations with its Arab neighbor as friendly and called for expansion of mutual ties, according to Financial Tribune.

He stressed the need to foster closer cooperation among regional countries under the current critical circumstances.

"We and you shall remain in this region and foreigners shall leave," he said, referring to efforts by countries outside the Middle East to interfere with the regional states' internal affairs.

The region has been experiencing a tense situation following several attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf.

The United States, which is at odds with Iran over the 2015 nuclear deal and has placed the country under sweeping sanctions, blamed Iran for the incidents without evidence, calling for an international military coalition to protect shipping lanes.

Zarif later met his Kuwaiti counterpart, Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah. The two diplomats discussed a range of subjects, including bilateral ties, regional issues such as developments in Syria and Yemen, the current situation in the Persian Gulf and other areas of mutual interest.

Earlier on Saturday, the top diplomat also held a session with members of Iran-Kuwait Friendship Association. Their main subjects of discussion included longstanding friendly relations between the two neighbors, regional issues such as Palestine, the need for cooperation among Persian Gulf states and the US economic pressure on Tehran.

Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida had cited informed sources as saying that Zarif also intended to discuss Iran's proposal for a non-aggression treaty between Persian Gulf states.

A non-aggression pact is a treaty between countries in which signatories promise not to engage in a war against each other and Iran's offer is in line with its efforts to prevent an armed conflict in the Middle East.

The Foreign Ministry has so far proposed the plan during several regional diplomatic visits, including to Iraq, Oman, Kuwait and Qatar.

According to Iran's Ambassador to Kuwait Mohammad Irani, several countries have welcomed the plan and response from others is pending.

"This is among very important international plans and can serve as a platform to solve most of the existing issues in the region," he said, adding that Iran has always backed cooperation among Muslim countries.