UAE for settling disputes with Iran over islands

The United Arab Emirates has announced that it has great hopes that Iran will move to settle the disputes between the two countries over three Gulf islands.

UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed al-Nahyan said in an interview with the Qatari satellite station al-Jazira aired on Monday, "We have great expectations that under the government of the Iranian President Muhammad Khatami, this issue will be settled."

Sheikh Hamdan expressed his country's hope that there will be a solid ground for settling the issue of the three islands and to achieve cooperation with the Iranian side. He also expressed hope for the success of the GCC tripartite committee which includes Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar in finding the basis for dialogue with Iran.

Meanwhile, other UAE dailies issued on Monday said that UAE Defense Minister Sheikh Muhammad Bin Rashed al-Maktoum also expressed his country's hope of finding a solution for the island question.