Kuwait toes Saudi line, recalls Ambassador from Iran

Kuwait - Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Sudan have taken steps to downgrade their diplomatic relations with Iran.

Kuwait on Tuesday recalled its ambassador from Iran as a reaction to the attacks on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran, and its Consulate-General in Mashhad, during which they were ransacked and set alight.

According to the Kuwait News Agency, KUNA, an official source from the foreign ministry said that Kuwait's ambassador to Tehran has been withdrawn, stressing that the attack on the Saudi Embassy grossly violates norms and international conventions, and is a grave breach of Iran's international obligations to ensure the safety and security of diplomatic missions on its soil.

Kuwait's move comes a day after UAE, Bahrain and Sudan took steps to downgrade or close down their diplomatic representation in Iran.

On Monday, the UAE downgraded the level of its diplomatic representation in Iran to that of a charge d' affaires and to require a reduction in the number of Iranian diplomats stationed in the UAE.

A Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement said that Saif Al Zaabi, the UAE Ambassador in Tehran, has been summoned home, in accordance with this decision.

Bahrain has also severed its diplomatic relations with Iran and shut down its diplomatic mission in Tehran.

Saudi Arabia had broke off diplomatic ties with Iran on Sunday after protesters ransacked its embassy in Tehran to protest the execution of a Shia cleric whose killing has sparked fury.

Sudan has also expelled the Iranian ambassador from Khartoum and the entire mission, and summoned the Sudanese ambassador from Iran.

• MENA