TEHRAN: Iran has expelled "several" Kuwaiti diplomats in a tit-for-tat retaliation for the expulsion of its diplomats accused of spying in the emirate, in a fresh blow to already tense relations across the Gulf.
"Iran has expelled in retaliation several Kuwaiti diplomats," the Islamic republic’s Arabic-language Al-Alam television reported Sunday, quoting an informed source who did not reveal how many diplomats had been asked to leave the country.
The source said the Kuwaiti embassy had been told that the diplomats were to leave Iran "soon", Al-Alam reported.
But Iran’s English-language Press TV said on it website, without giving a source, that "three" Kuwaiti diplomats were expelled after "three" Iranian diplomats were told to leave Kuwait "on April 2".
Kuwait announced on March 31 that a number of Iranian diplomats would be expelled for alleged links to an espionage network working for Tehran, reportedly ever since the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.
Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Mohammed Al-Sabah claimed the diplomats had proven links to the suspected ring of which three members, including two Iranians, had been condemned to death by a Kuwaiti court.
The issue was also raised by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) — uniting Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman, in addition to Kuwait — which accused Tehran of interfering in their internal affairs.
Iran was quick to reject the accusations, with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad saying Tehran did not need to to spy on its "friends" in the region.
"It is clear that (this allegation) has no meaning. What is this spying in Kuwait all about? What does Kuwait have that we spy on it?"
Ahmadinejad asked at a press conference on April 4.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi had also dismissed Kuwaiti charges, saying it was a "conspiracy" aimed at sowing discord among Islamic countries.
Arab-Iranian relations across the Gulf have been damaged in recent weeks, as Tehran vocally insists on supporting the popular uprisings in the region.
Iranian officials have also strongly condemned the violent crackdown by Bahrain against its Shia opposition as well as a decision by its Sunni monarch to ask Saudi-led GCC troops to be deployed in the tiny island.
The GCC in return accused the Shia powerhouse of plotting against the security of its Sunni monarchies and of fanning confessional discord among their citizens.
Ahmadinejad has dismissed as worthless the Arab warning, saying it "was issued under pressure from America and its allies".
But Salehi on Saturday announced Iran was prepared to diplomatically "resolve" differences with its neighbours.
"If there are some mistrusts (between Iran and the Arab countries), we can sit down and resolve them through diplomatic channels," Salehi told a press conference.
