Iran has protested to Iraq over reports that Baghdad had backed the
United Arab Emirates' claim to three islands in the Gulf, the foreign
ministry said on Wednesday.

"The Iraqi ambassador (Mohammed Majid Abbas al-Sheikh) was invited (to the foreign ministry) and was notified of Iran's protest," foreign
ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini told the state broadcaster.

"The Iraqi government was also asked to correct its position," he said.

The official UAE agency WAM reported on April 28 that in a memorandum
sent to the UAE foreign ministry, the Iraqi government asserted "its
unconditional support to the sovereignty of UAE" over the three islands.

"It also said that Iraq supports all procedures and peaceful means UAE
will adopt to reclaim the three islands, and rejects any action from
Iran to bolster the occupation," the agency reported.