TEHRAN - Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian attended a session of the Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee on Tuesday to brief them on a number of issues related to Iran’s foreign relations.

“Today was an opportunity for me to visit the members of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee and present a report on the latest bilateral relations and international issues and issues of concern to the Committee. At the same time, a number of honorable representatives had questions and concerns about the issues that were answered,” he said, according to IRNA. 

Amir Abdollahian also answered questions on the Russian statement on the three Iranian islands of the Persian Gulf. “We do not neglect Iran's territorial integrity in any way and we do not negotiate about them because these issues cannot be negotiated or traded,” he said in the meeting, according to IRNA. 

Commenting on his phone conversation with his Russian counterpart, Amir Abdollahian said that he had told the Russian foreign minister that Iran expects Russia to make up for its mistake. 

“Moscow's dereliction toward the part of the Islamic Republic of Iran is not acceptable, and we expect Russia to compensate for this issue, and such positions will surely harm the relations between the two countries,” he told the Russian foreign minister, according to IRNA. 

Russia fully respects Iran’s territorial integrity: Lavrov

The foreign ministers of Iran and Russia discussed over the phone the recent tensions between Tehran and Moscow over a controversial statement cosigned by Russia.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov spoke over the phone amid Iranian criticism of Russia over its endorsement of the United Arab Emirates’ claim to the three Iranian islands of Abu Mousa, the Greater Tunb, and the Lesser Tunb in the Persian Gulf. 

In the call, the Russian foreign minister said Moscow has “no doubts” about the territorial integrity of Iran.

The two sides called the relations between the two countries growing and emphasized the will of the presidents of the two countries to develop relations as much as possible, according to a statement by the Iranian foreign ministry.

Expressing surprise at the provisions of the paragraph related to the three Iranian islands of the Persian Gulf in the joint statement of Russia and the countries on the southern shores of the Persian Gulf, Amir Abdollahian emphasized that these islands historically and eternally belong to Iran.

“The independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran was and is not negotiable in any way,” he added.

At the same time, Amir Abdollahian called the relations between Iran and Russia as having strong foundations and noted that nothing should be done to harm the deep relations between the two countries.

Foreign Minister Lavrov also pointed to Russia's adherence to all the principles of the United Nations Charter, including the principles related to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries. “The Russian Federation has no doubts about the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran and has respected and will respect it completely,” he said.

The two chief diplomats also emphasized the need to respect and maintain and strengthen the friendly relations between the two countries and also exchanged views on the final stages of drafting the text of the strategic agreement between Iran and Russia.

 3+3 format

Referring to the developments in the Caucasus, they also paid attention to the recent conversation between the Iranian Foreign Minister and the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit hosted by Baku on July 5-6.

In this regard, the framework of regional negotiations, including the so-called 3+3 format which encompasses Iran, Russia, Turkey and the Republic of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia, was emphasized. 

In the conversation, Lavrov and Amir Abdollahian also consulted on holding the second meeting of the foreign ministers of Iran, Russia, Turkey and Syria, the Iranian foreign ministry said.