I feel sorry for the position that the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry put himself into, at the UN general assembly a few day ago. When he was asked to reply to a statement by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates minister, that experts found diplomatically positive, he did not actually find much to say. In response, he ‘advised’ Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed to be ‘realistic’, then carried on repeating ‘classic’ words that specialists on Iranian policy have found boring to listen to.
When I read the Iranian spokesman’s confusing remarks, I simply realized that he had ‘fell into the trap,’ not finding the words to reply as ordered by his Supreme Leader. His position was unworthy of a spokesperson of Iran’s foreign ministry. Apparently, Mr. Bahram Ghasemi’s strange comment was referring to Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s statement that:
‘Crises in the region cannot take our attention away from our principal national cause, that is the UAE sovereignty over the three islands: Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa, under Iranian occupation in violation of the provisions of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, calling on Iran to restore the rights to their owners either voluntarily or by resorting to peaceful means to resolve international disputes, including the resort to international justice or arbitration.’
Sheikh Abdullah then presented an objective characterization of the conduct of Iran regionally since the signing of the nuclear deal with the 5+1 Group, when he said that:
‘in spite of reaching what is known as “the nuclear deal” between Tehran and the countries of the 5+1 Group, although countries in the region welcomed that agreement, and contrary to all optimistic expectation that Iran would change its hostile approach, Tehran continued to undermine the security of the region through the fiery rhetoric, interventionism and production and arming of militias, not to mention the development of its ballistic missile program, its classification as a state sponsor of terrorism. These are all policies that Tehran has refused to abandon.’
‘It goes without saying that the Iranian unchanged conduct confirms that our conception that the key to stability in the region is responding to and resolving crises, not simply trying to manage them,’ he added.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed did not address Iran in his speech. He was aware that the Iranian ‘turbans’ were in an overwhelming state of escapism and ‘political recklessness’. Who adopts a regional bullying approach cannot understand the language of rationality, so the message was instead addressed international community, which is aware of Iran’s countless violations of international law beyond those mentioned by the UAE Foreign Affairs minister.
Iranian spokesman Bahram Ghasemi was unable to formulate a coherent answer in response to Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed’s statement of well-known facts.
Will Iran deny her interventionism in crises of Iraq, Syria and Yemen? How can she deny the matter while her officials boast publicly about occupying capitals of Arab countries and even declare the formation of a sectarian ‘Liberation Army’ targeting several countries in the region?
Some say solving of the problem starts with recognizing the problem. Iran cannot engage in a serious regional dialogue if she is not willing to face the problems brought about by her political conduct and direct involvement in the regional crises. It seems that denial and arrogance is what has motivated the Iranian spokesman to describe the stated facts as ‘unfounded accusations.’
The Iranian spokesman said that the UAE abandoned its ‘conservative traditional role,’ and I think this is precisely what Iran is concerned about. Tehran is worked up that the UAE leadership, through national historical awareness, made the decision to openly address any issue relevant to Arab national security and to support the Gulf Arab states to preserve the security and stability in the region.
Meanwhile, Iran has continued adopting a policy of grandiosity and political absurdity with its GCC neighbors, to the point of denying certain facts. Tehran does not realize that its conduct is insufferable, especially since it went as far as deliberately harming the national security of the GCC countries through its agents in Yemen.
The false claims that the Iranian spokesman has expressed will not change the legal and historical facts. The issue is legally and historically clear to the institutions and organizations of the international community. The Iranian presence can only be described as one of the worst practices of occupation.
Another matter that the Iranians have missed is when Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan called on the international community to look for serious solutions to the crises in the region and not simply try to manage them. Fair solutions to regional problems can always be sought through international mediation without harming Iran of any other country.
However, the leaders of Iran seek not compromises and solutions, but rather expansion, control, domination and dissemination of chaos regionally. The diplomatic tone is not their favorite and the just demands of the UAE is trouble to them.
Finally, Bahram, you were fooled when you were told to respond to a reasonable word with nonsensical clichés of allegations than only Iranian leaders and ‘dervishes’ – inside cand abroad – would buy. Bahram, you carried yourself like the ‘fool of the palace’ entertaining the guests, while the assembly was discussing real crises and issues to which the UAE is seeking to find actual solutions.
