Iran criticises Gulf Cooperation Council over regional security stance

International, Middle East

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has criticised the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) over its approach to regional security, accusing the bloc of relying on what it described as “the greatest violator of security” to safeguard the region.

The Head of the Centre for Public Diplomacy and Spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmaeil Baqaei, made the remarks in a statement issued on Friday.

Baqaei said Iran remained more committed than any other country to ensuring collective security in the region, arguing that seeking external security guarantees from powers Tehran considers responsible for regional instability was counterproductive.

“Undoubtedly, Iran, more than any other party, is concerned with ensuring the collective security of the region. For the Gulf Cooperation Council to imagine that the solution to addressing this concern lies in seeking refuge with the greatest violator of security is, in itself, a violation of the very purpose—a bitter irony and a disheartening sign of failing to learn from recent bitter experiences,” he said.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman also questioned the role of some Gulf states during recent regional tensions.

He alleged that some of Iran’s southern neighbours had violated the principles of good neighbourliness and international law by participating in attacks against Iran or allowing their territories to be used for military operations targeting the country.

“The southern neighbours must be asked why they themselves, in violation of the principle of good neighbourliness and the fundamental rules of international law, took part in an aggressive attack against a Muslim neighbour and allowed their territory to be used against Iran or for launching missiles from there,” Baqaei said.

He further questioned what he described as the region’s silence over the continued acquisition of advanced weapons by some countries and Israel’s military actions.

“Why do they turn a blind eye to the destructive arms race and the purchase and stockpiling of hundreds of billions of dollars in advanced weaponry that has no defensive justification?” he asked.

Baqaei also criticised what he described as the failure to condemn repeated Israeli military operations in the region and what he called Israel’s undeclared nuclear arsenal, while Iran’s conventional military capabilities continued to attract criticism.

According to him, Iran’s military capabilities are intended solely to guarantee the country’s inherent right to legitimate self-defence while contributing to regional peace and stability.

“The national security and dignity of the country cannot be bargained or made conditional. Just as the inherent right to legitimate self-defence can never be a subject for negotiation, its instruments cannot be a subject for compromise with any party,” he said.