Gulf States: Nuclear talks should address the Iranian missile program

DUBAI, June 16 (Reuters) – Arab Gulf states on Wednesday said it was dangerous to sever the world powers’ nuclear deal with Iran from Tehran’s missile program and “destabilizing” behavior and again called for them to be included in the dialogue.

The world powers and Iran entered a sixth round of talks in Vienna on Saturday to revive the 2015 nuclear pact, which Saudi Arabia and its allies opposed for not addressing their concerns and which the United States abandoned in 2018.

Tehran has resisted any attempt to add further topics to the agreement, after which it agreed to reduce its nuclear program in return for the lifting of international sanctions. US President Joe Biden wants to restore the deal that his predecessor Donald Trump gave up.

The foreign ministers of the Arab Gulf states called on the powers that be to conclude an agreement with stricter restrictions and a longer duration and to combine it “with practical steps to build confidence” in order to prevent an arms race and further conflicts in the region.

In a statement following a meeting in Riyadh, they said the Gulf States should be involved in global negotiations with Tehran and are ready to “cooperate on the basis of respect for sovereignty and good neighborliness and deal seriously and effectively with the Iranian nuclear act”. “.

The statement stressed “the risk of separating the effects of the nuclear deal” from the Iranian missile program and support for regional proxies, and urged Tehran to engage in serious talks and avoid escalations.

Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran, which severed ties in 2016, began direct talks in Iraq in April to contain tensions.

They are embroiled in a rivalry across the region, including Yemen, where a Riyadh-led military coalition has been fighting the Iranian-allied Houthi movement for more than six years.

Reporting by Marwa Rashad; Writing by Raya Jalabi; Adaptation by Mark Heinrich

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