Jordan Summons Iranian Ambassador in Protest; 'Tehran Should Not Interfere in Arab Countries' Affairs

On Sunday, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry summoned the Iranian ambassador in Amman in protest against the statements made by the spokesperson of the Iranian Foreign Ministry. According to Ammon News, on Sunday, April 8, Mojtaba Ferdowsipour, the Iranian ambassador, was summoned in response to the recent remarks of the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson. The Jordanian Foreign Ministry also requested that Tehran adhere to international conventions and refrain from interfering in the affairs of Arab countries, respecting good neighborliness. The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson had described the Jordanian statements regarding the Islamic Republic's support for terrorism as 'ill-considered and trivial' and indicative of 'shallow understanding' of regional developments. Bahram Qasemi urged King Abdullah to pay attention to the official statistics regarding 'Jordanian terrorists joining ISIS and other bloodthirsty and ignorant groups' before commenting on Iran. On Saturday, April 19, King Abdullah II of Jordan stated in an interview with the Washington Post that Iran and the Islamic State group, ISIS, 'are on the same side of terrorism.' He emphasized that some strategic problems in the Middle East 'are related to Iran.' The Jordanian king has previously accused the Islamic Republic of interfering in regional affairs. He was the first to use the term 'Shia Crescent' to express concern over Iran's efforts to expand Shia influence across Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Bahrain. Two weeks ago, Saudi Arabia and Jordan also expressed concern in a joint statement about what they termed 'Tehran's interference in the internal affairs of regional countries' following a meeting of their leaders. Jordan, which has close ties with Saudi Arabia, limited its response to summoning the Iranian ambassador in Amman after the attack on the Saudi embassy, maintaining full diplomatic relations with Iran. Nasser Judeh, the Jordanian Foreign Minister, made an unexpected visit to Tehran in March 2015, which was seen as a turning point in improving relations between Amman and Tehran. Unlike some regional countries, Jordan does not insist on removing Bashar al-Assad from leadership in Syria. Relations between Iran and several Arab countries in the Persian Gulf, particularly Saudi Arabia, have soured following conflicts in Syria and Yemen. Iran supports the Assad regime in Syria, while Saudi Arabia is one of the main supporters of a group of rebels in that country. In Yemen, the situation is reversed, as a coalition led by Riyadh conducts airstrikes against Houthi rebels in support of the official government, while Iranian officials have supported the Houthis and have been repeatedly accused of 'sending weapons' to them.