Addressing a conference in Doha entitled NATO and the Greater Middle East, GCC Secretary General Abdurrahman bin Hamad al-Attiyah said the issue of Iran and the Gulf was a top priority because it was directly linked to regional security.
Al-Attiyah asserted that nuclear weapons in the region would trigger an unjustified nuclear race thus undermining mutual confidence.
Tehran’s nuclear ambitions can start a nuclear race in the region and would also create mistrust in its relations with the GCC states, al-Attiyah said, adding, Iran’s nuclear ambitions pose a threat to member countries of the GCC and NATO. They can also endanger global security.
The GCC Secretary General accused Iran of meddling in neighbouring Iraq, particularly in the southern regions. He also criticised Irans meddling in the internal affairs of GCC states and called on Tehran to instead hold talks with the countries.
On Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi lashed back at the GCC chief, strongly condemning the charges.
Public opinion in the region will judge such baseless claims which ignore the main sources of threat the nuclear arsenals of the Zionist regime and presence of occupation forces [United States”> as well as the ever increasing pressure of big powers on Muslim nations of the region aiming to deny them their right for access to modern technologies, Asefi said.
