The Saudi Foreign Ministry said it monitors with “close attention and grave concern” the lists of maritime coordinates and the map that Iraq recently submitted to the UN.
In a statement on Monday, the Ministry said that these lists include infringements that encompass large areas of the divided submerged zone adjacent to the Saudi-Kuwaiti Divided Zone, where the two countries share natural resources in line with previous agreements between them.
Furthermore, the statement noted that these coordinates violate the sovereignty of Kuwait over its maritime areas and elevations, including Fasht Al-Qaid and Fasht Al-Aij.
In light of this, the Kingdom reiterated its categorical rejection of any claims suggesting that any other side has the right to the divided submerged area between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
Additionally, it urged Iraq to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kuwait. It also stressed the need to uphold bilateral and international pledges and agreements, as well as all relevant UN resolutions – particularly Security Council Resolution 833 (1993), which definitively delineated the land and maritime borders between Kuwait and Iraq.
On Saturday, Kuwait summoned the Iraqi chargé d’affaires to the country, officially protesting the list of coordinates and the map that include encroachments on the sovereignty of Kuwait over its maritime areas and its fixed and established water elevations.
In response, Iraq said that the submission was in accordance with the provisions of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the rules of international law, stressing that the demarcation of its maritime zones is a “sovereign matter in which no other state has the right to interfere.”
In addition to Saudi Arabia, several Gulf States reaffirmed their support for Kuwait’s sovereignty over its maritime territories, including Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE.
