Iran Summons South Korean Envoy over President’s Remarks

By Staff, Agencies

The ambassador of South Korea to Tehran was called in by the Iranian Foreign Ministry in protest at the recent interfering comments made by South Korea's president in the United Arab Emirates.

In a meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Iranian deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs voiced Tehran’s strong protest against the South Korean president’s remarks.

Reza Najafi highlighted Iran’s friendly ties with most Gulf states and said the comments made by the South Korean president are tantamount to interference in the friendly relations and undermine peace and security in the region.

The Iranian diplomat also demanded an immediate explanation about the remarks and underscored the need for Seoul to correct such an approach.

Referring to the unfriendly moves by South Korea, including the freezing of the Iranian nation's assets, Najafi said Seoul’s failure to take effective measures to resolve disputes will prompt Iran to reconsider bilateral ties.

He also described the South Korean president’s comments about the possibility of making nuclear arms as being in contradiction to the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, NPT, and demanded an explanation, the Foreign Ministry’s website reported.

For his part, the South Korean ambassador gave some explanations about the remarks from his country’s president.

Yun Kang-hyeon stressed that such statements have nothing to do with the ties between Iran and the UAE or Korea. He, however, noted that he would convey the Islamic Republic of Iran’s views and expectations to the Korean government.

Addressing the UAE-based Korean forces during a recent trip to the Persian Gulf Arab state, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol drew an analogy between the alleged threat posed to his country by North Korea and what he called the "threat" facing Abu Dhabi from Iran. He then labeled Iran as the "most-threatening nation" to the UAE.