Ministerial Quartet Committee discusses crisis development with Iran

Riyadh, Apr. 12 (BNA): On the sidelines of the Foreign Ministers' Preparatory Meeting for the 29th Arab Ordinary Summit to be held in the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, today in Riyadh, participated in the meeting of the Arab Ministerial Quartet Committee in charge of following up on the crisis with Iran and addressing its interference in the Arab States’ internal affairs. The committee is made up of the United Arab Emirates (Head), the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Arab Republic of Egypt and Secretary General of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit. The meeting discussed the developments of the crisis with the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Arab relations with Tehran besides ways of confronting its interventions in the internal affairs of the Arab States. The Ministerial Committee issued a statement, condemning the continued destructive Iranian interference in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain and lauding the Kingdom's efforts to combat terrorism paying tribute to its competent security agencies for thwarting a number of terrorist acts and plots that led to the arrest of 116 terrorist elements. The terrorist elements belong to a terrorist organization formed and financed by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and their external military arms, including the terrorist groups of Asaib Ahl Al-Haq and Hezbollah, denouncing the latter for forming, financing and training those elements and providing them with weapons and explosive devices, to carry out a series of serious terrorist acts to disrupt security and stability and hit the economy of the Kingdom of Bahrain.  And concerning the Iranian interference in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the committee reviewed the report submitted by the Kingdom of Bahrain on the role of Iran’s Bank of the Future which has been recently shut in supporting and financing terrorism in a flagrant breach of international conventions and laws and in a way indicating Iran’s continued support of terrorism.  The Ministerial Committee condemned the continuing Iranian interference in the internal affairs of the Arab states and the provocative statements of its officials against the Arab countries, expressing deep concern about Iran's fueling of sectarian strife in the Arab countries. It blamed Iran for supporting and arming terrorist militias in some Arab countries leading to chaos and instability in the region and posing threats to Arab national security as well as impeding regional and international efforts to resolve the issues and crises of the region through peaceful means, demanding it to stop such conduct. The Committee also deplored Iran's continuation to support acts of terrorism and sabotage in the Arab countries, including the firing of ballistic missiles from Yemeni territory into Saudi Arabia, in a blatant violation of Security Council resolution 2216 of 2015, reiterating its support for the measures taken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom of Bahrain to combat these acts of aggression and protect their security and stability. The Committee denounced Iran's continued development of its ballistic missile program and supplying the Huthis with such lethal weapons to target with such Iranian-made missiles the towns and villages of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It cited the launch of 7 ballistic missiles on March 25, 2018 and April 11, 2018 towards a number of Saudi cities, including the capital Riyadh which were met with vast Arab and international condemnation, affirming that these acts pose a threat to regional security and stability. It also stressed the need for Iran to comply with Security Council resolution 2231 of 2015 on its missile program and called for an effective mechanism to verify its implementation of the agreement and to inspect, control and re-impose deterrent sanctions quickly and effectively if it violates its obligations.  The ministerial Committee demanded that Iran adhere to all nuclear safety treaties and take into account the environmental problems it causes to the region, seen that the resolution emphasized the need for Iran to halt fire-testing and developing of long-range ballistic and nuclear-capable missiles.  The Committee expressed its concern about Iran's nuclear program and cast doubt on its seriousness to adhere to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and whether the agreement is able to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons in the future, especially in light of Iran's hostile policies in the region, stressing the need for close monitoring of this dossier.