عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Khamenei Representative Calls on Moscow for ‘Urgent Reform’ of Stance on Emirati Islands

Khamenei receives Russian President Vladimir Putin in Tehran, July of last year (Iranian Supreme Leader’s website)
Khamenei receives Russian President Vladimir Putin in Tehran, July of last year (Iranian Supreme Leader’s website)
TT
TT

Khamenei Representative Calls on Moscow for ‘Urgent Reform’ of Stance on Emirati Islands

Khamenei receives Russian President Vladimir Putin in Tehran, July of last year (Iranian Supreme Leader’s website)
Khamenei receives Russian President Vladimir Putin in Tehran, July of last year (Iranian Supreme Leader’s website)

Mohammed Hassan Abu Tarabi, the Friday prayer leader in Tehran and a representative of the Iranian Supreme Leader, has called on Moscow to “urgently reform” its stance in supporting the UAE initiative and efforts to achieve a peaceful resolution to the issue of the three occupied islands: Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa.

Moscow has faced mounting criticism from political circles, particularly from the reformist and moderate factions in Iran, questioning the feasibility of the Iranian-Russian rapprochement.

These factions oppose the policy of “looking towards the East,” advocated by the Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, to foster closer ties between Moscow and Beijing.

In an attempt to counter its critics, the Iranian government sought to undermine their arguments by summoning the Russian ambassador to Tehran. Additionally, it indirectly criticized the Russian position without explicitly mentioning Russia by name.

However, the policy of refraining from directly criticizing Moscow only intensified the criticisms. Eventually, officials close to Khamenei’s office entered the fray and directly criticized Moscow.

Criticism against Russia escalated on Friday as websites republished a tweet from the Russian Foreign Ministry, quoting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s welcome message to his counterparts in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

“Given the strategic relations between Tehran and Moscow, as well as the principles outlined in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization regarding respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of member states, the Iranian people and the peoples of the Islamic region expect Moscow to promptly rectify and amend its recent position regarding the three Iranian islands,” said Abu Tarabi, according to IRNA.

It is well known that Friday prayer leaders in Iran, especially in the capital Tehran, express the positions of Khamenei regarding the latest developments in the political arena.

Abu Tarabi became the second official affiliated with Khamenei’s office to comment on Moscow’s stance, following Ali Akbar Velayati, the advisor to the Iranian Supreme Leader on international affairs, who accused Moscow of “naivety.”

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Rescuers Dig for Survivors of Vanuatu Earthquake

A handout photo made available by the Vanuatu Police Force shows rescue teams conducting search and rescue operations following an earthquake in Port Vila, Vanuatu, 17 December 2024 (issued 18 December 2024). EPA/Vanuatu Police Force
A handout photo made available by the Vanuatu Police Force shows rescue teams conducting search and rescue operations following an earthquake in Port Vila, Vanuatu, 17 December 2024 (issued 18 December 2024). EPA/Vanuatu Police Force
TT
TT

Rescuers Dig for Survivors of Vanuatu Earthquake

A handout photo made available by the Vanuatu Police Force shows rescue teams conducting search and rescue operations following an earthquake in Port Vila, Vanuatu, 17 December 2024 (issued 18 December 2024). EPA/Vanuatu Police Force
A handout photo made available by the Vanuatu Police Force shows rescue teams conducting search and rescue operations following an earthquake in Port Vila, Vanuatu, 17 December 2024 (issued 18 December 2024). EPA/Vanuatu Police Force

Vanuatu's capital was without water on Wednesday, a day after reservoirs were destroyed by a violent magnitude 7.3 earthquake that wrought havoc on the South Pacific island nation, with the number of people killed and injured expected to rise.
The government's disaster management office said early Wednesday that 14 deaths were confirmed, but hours later said nine had been verified by the main hospital. The number was “expected to increase" as people remained trapped in fallen buildings, a spokesperson said. About 200 have been treated for injuries, The Associated Press reported.
Frantic rescue efforts that began at flattened buildings after the quake hit early Tuesday afternoon continued 30 hours later, with dozens working in dust and heat with little water to seek those yelling for help inside. A few more survivors were extracted from the rubble of downtown buildings in Port Vila, also the country's largest city, while others remained trapped and some were found dead.
A near-total telecommunications collapse meant people struggled to confirm their relatives' safety. Some providers began to reestablish phone service but connections were patchy.
Internet service had not been restored because the submarine cable supplying it was damaged, the operator said.
The earthquake hit at a depth of 57 kilometers (35 miles) and was centered 30 kilometers (19 miles) west of the capital of Vanuatu, a group of 80 islands home to about 330,000 people. A tsunami warning was called off less than two hours after the quake, but dozens of large aftershocks continued to rattle the country.
The Asia-Pacific head of the International Federation of Red Cross, Katie Greenwood, speaking to The Associated Press from Fiji, said it was not clear how many people were still missing or killed.
“We have anecdotal information coming from people at the search and rescue site that are fairly confident that unfortunately those numbers will rise,” she said.
The capital’s main medical facility, Vila Central Hospital, was badly damaged and patients were moved to a military camp. Clement Chipokolo, Vanuatu country director at the Christian relief agency World Vision, said health care services, already strained before the quake, were overwhelmed.
No water in Port Vila While power was out in swathes of Port Vila, the biggest fear among aid agencies was the lack of water. Two large reservoirs serving the capital were totally decimated, the National Disaster Management Office said.
Resident Milroy Cainton said people were joining large queues to buy water in stores, but could only purchase two or four bottles at a time. “People are not really concerned about electricity, they're just concerned about water,” he said.
UNICEF was recording a rise in diarrhea among children, a sign that they had begun to drink tainted water, said the chief of the Vanuatu office, Eric Durpaire. Officials told residents of areas where water had been restored to boil it.