TEHRAN / ISTANBUL

Iran summoned envoys of European Union countries on Wednesday to protest what it called the bloc’s “interventionist” statements over Tehran’s nuclear program and three islands disputed with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), local media said.

The state television said Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht Ravanchi handed a note of protest to the ambassadors and the heads of missions of the EU member states regarding the bloc’s "interventionist" statements about three islands under Iranian sovereignty and Iran's nuclear program.

Ravanchi described the position of European countries towards the islands as "a violation of the principle of respect for national sovereignty and the territorial integrity of the country."

In the final statement of the 29th Joint Council and Ministerial Meeting in Kuwait on Monday, the EU and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) called on Iran to “end its occupation of the three islands of Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa” and to resume nuclear cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Iran asserted its dominance over the three islands in November 1971, which had been under British occupation since 1903. Only a few days later, the UK transferred control of the islands to the UAE, a newly established country.

The UAE considers Iran, which deployed military forces to the islands, as an "occupier," while Iran claims that the territories were temporarily under British control in 1903 and returned in 1971.

The UAE is actively pursuing initiatives with Arab countries and international organizations to regain the three islands.