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The Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) held an Extraordinary Meeting at the Headquarters of the OIC General Secretariat in Jeddah on Thursday 11 Rabii Athani 1437 AH, corresponding to 21 January 2016 AD, under the chairmanship of His Excellency Sheikh Sabah Khalid Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Kuwait, Chairman of the current session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers, at the request of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in order to consider the storming of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Tehran and its Consulate General in Mashhad.
Having considered the letter of His Excellency the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Mr. Adel bin Ahmad Al-Jubeir, No. 6/4/117695 in date of 26/03/1437 AH., corresponding to 6/01/2016 AD;
In accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963, both of which emphasize the inviolability of the premises and members of diplomatic missions, and the obligation of the host country to provide necessary protection against any aggression;
Based on the Charter of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Charter of the United Nations on the preservation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Member States and the non-interference in their internal affairs;
With reference to the Statement issued by the UN Security Council on 04/01/2016, which condemned the assault on the premises of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Tehran and its Consulate General in the city of Mashhad;
After deliberations on the matter,
The Council:
1. Condemns the aggressions against the missions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Tehran and Mashhad, which constitute a flagrant violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961, the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963, and international law which guarantees the inviolability of diplomatic missions and imposes the immunity of and respect for diplomatic missions accredited to any State in a clear and binding manner.
2. Affirms that these aggressions contravene the Charter of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Charter of the United Nations, which call for promoting trust and fostering friendly relations, mutual respect and cooperation among Member States, resolving conflicts through peaceful means, preserving peace and security, and abstaining from interfering in the internal affairs of States;
3. Rejects and condemns Iran’s inflammatory statements on the execution of judicial decisions against the perpetrators of terrorist crimes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, considering those statements a blatant interference in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a contravention of the United Nations Charter, the OIC Charter and of all international covenants which call for non-interference in the internal affairs of Member States, particularly those affairs that are within internal legislations;
4. Denounces Iran’s interference in the internal affairs of the States of the region and other Member States (including Bahrain, Yemen and Syria and Somalia) and its continued support for terrorism.
5. Expresses full support for and backing of the efforts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and all Member States to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, regardless of its source and objectives;
6. Supports the legislative and legal measures taken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to counter aggressions against its diplomatic and consular missions in Iran;
7. Affirms the statements made by Member and non-member States, the UN Security Council, the League of Arab States, the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf and other regional and international organizations, which firmly condemned and deplored the aggressions on the Embassy and Consulate of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Tehran and Mashhad;
8. Calls for denouncing the sectarian and denominational agenda as it carries destructive impacts and serious repercussions for Member States’ security and stability and for international peace and security.
9. Underscores the importance of reinforcing relations of good neighborliness among the Member States for the good interest of peoples, consistent with the OIC Charter.
10. Calls on all Member States and the international community to take serious and effective steps to prevent the occurrence and recurrence of such aggressions on diplomatic and consular missions in Iran in the future.
11. Supports all political efforts to achieve permanent settlement to conflicts among Member States based on the charters of the OIC Charter, UN Charter and international law.
12. Requests the OIC Secretary General to inform the UN Secretary General and regional and international organizations of this communiqué and to submit a report thereon to the next session of the Council of Foreign Ministers.
• The delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran declared its rejection of the Communiqué, stating that it dissociates itself from it.
• The delegation of the Lebanese Republic stated that Lebanon distances itself from the Communiqué.
• The Delegation of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria submitted an explanatory remark on paragraph 5 to the effect that (in compliance with the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of States, the legitimate and legal measures taken by the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia referred to in paragraph 5 of the Communiqué fall under the realm of sovereign decisions. Therefore, such a multi-lateral meeting is not required to take a position thereon).
