Tensions rise in the Middle East following new attacks between Iran and the US
The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry expressed its “condemnation and denunciation… in the strongest terms, of Iran’s repeated atrocious aggression against the State of Kuwait, the most recent of which occurred early this morning, in a flagrant violation of its sovereignty.”
File photo of Iran
The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry denounced a new Iranian attack on its territory on Sunday, after Tehran announced it had launched attacks against U.S. military bases in the Gulf in retaliation for U.S. airstrikes on Iranian territory.
In a statement, the Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry expressed its "expresses its condemnation and denunciation of... in the strongest terms, the recurrence of Iran's heinous aggression against the State of Kuwait, the latest of which was at dawn today, in a flagrant violation of its sovereignty."
For its part, Bahrain reported that its air defenses intercepted Iranian missiles and drones following the new U.S. attacks on Iran. The Bahraini military stated that it had "intercepted and destroyed a number of projectiles used in these treacherous Iranian attacks" and affirmed that it remains on “high alert.”
Hours earlier, Iran had announced that it had launched attacks against the US Fifth Fleet base in Bahrain and another U.S. base in Kuwait, in response to US airstrikes on its territory.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned on Sunday that any attempt to alter the shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz agreed upon with the United States “would increase tensions” in the Middle East, amid a context marked by an exchange of attacks and accusations between Washington and Tehran over breaches of a fragile truce.
During a visit to Baghdad, Araghchi also called for the creation of a new regional security framework that includes the Gulf states.
"Any attempt to adopt new or separate arrangements compared to what is underway by the Islamic Republic of Iran, will only lead to more complicated situations and delays in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and will increase the tensions, as we witnessed in the past two nights," Araghchi told a press conference.
Tracking platforms showed on Friday that several ships continued to use a shipping lane not authorized by Iran in this strategic waterway.
A day earlier, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed that Oman and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) had announced the new corridor without consulting Tehran and warned vessels not to use it.
Araghchi’s statements came after the U.S. military announced that on Saturday it carried out new strikes against multiple targets in Iran, in response to a new attack on a vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Tehran responded by launching attacks on U.S. bases in the Gulf.
The recent clashes have put a strain on the negotiation process aimed at ending the war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on Feb. 28.
A new framework
He also stated that"we should reach a new framework that includes all countries in the region and without the presence or interference of any country from outside the region."
The Iranian minister also welcomed Iraq’s proposal to hold a meeting between the Gulf States, Iran, and Iraq, a country that has been involved in the war since the conflict began.
As planned, Iraq will hold funeral processions on July 8 for Iran’s late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who died during the U.S. and Israeli attacks on the first day of the war.
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