Maps created over 130 years ago at the direction of the Marquess of Salisbury, then Britain’s foreign secretary, have been referenced by Iran in its intensifying dispute with Gulf states over ownership of three strategic islands at the Strait of Hormuz entrance.
The ongoing dispute threatens to undermine Iran’s current push for stronger ties with Gulf partners and has emerged as an additional obstacle to improving relations with the European Union.
The matter is highly sensitive within Iran and gained urgency after the EU issued a joint statement at its inaugural summit with the Gulf Cooperation Council last month, condemning Iran’s “occupation of the islands” as a breach of the UN charter and a violation of the UAE’s sovereignty.
In response to the EU’s support for the UAE’s stance, Iranian diplomats are referencing War Office maps from 1888, showing that Britain considered the islands part of Iran at a time when the UAE was known as the “Pirate Coast.”
The ownership dispute over the three islands — Abu Musa, Greater Tunb, and Lesser Tunb — has spanned 50 years. These islands, sparsely populated and largely neglected, are strategically located at the Strait of Hormuz, a critical pathway for oil shipments. Abu Musa is claimed by Sharjah, and the other two islands by Ras al-Khaimah, both emirates of the UAE since 1971.
Britain occupied the islands in 1908, relinquishing their protectorate status in 1971 as part of its east-of-Suez withdrawal. Britain attempted but failed to negotiate a settlement for the Tunbs, though it brokered a temporary arrangement for shared control of Abu Musa between Iran and Sharjah. However, Iran forcibly seized the Tunbs after Britain’s departure, citing historic claims to the islands dating back to the 6th century BC. Lesser Tunb, just one square mile, is reportedly home only to poisonous snakes, according to the CIA.
In 1992, Iran expelled remaining Emirati inhabitants from Abu Musa, taking full control of the island. Now considered Iran’s first defense line in the Strait of Hormuz, Abu Musa — the only inhabited island of the three — hosts a civilian population of fewer than 2,000 people, with Iran recently pledging further development there.
The UAE’s attempts to resolve the dispute through international arbitration have so far been unsuccessful, as Iran rejects third-party intervention. However, the UAE has garnered support from all five permanent UN Security Council members, marking an unusual instance of Iran opposing both China and Russia.
In a rare move, Iranian diplomats are also referencing an 1888 map given by UK ambassador Henry Drummond Wolff to Iran’s Shah Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, at a time when Britain favored Iran amid its resistance to Russian expansion. In 1892, George Curzon, then viceroy and governor-general of India, referenced Royal Geographical Society maps in his book *Persia and the Persian Question*, asserting the islands belonged to Iran.
The UAE counters that Britain’s stance shifted over time and argues the islands historically belonged to the Qasimi dynasty in Sharjah.
The EU’s recent endorsement of the UAE’s claim in a joint statement has triggered strong reactions in Iran. A large poster of the islands was unveiled in Tehran’s Valiasr Square. Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, responded on social media, condemning the EU-GCC statement: “The three islands have always belonged to Iran and will forever remain as such. The era of European ‘divide and rule’ interference in our region is long over.”
Araghchi’s criticism was aimed more at Europe than Arab states, reflecting Iran’s efforts to avoid tensions with Gulf nations as it seeks to build a new regional alliance against Israel. He has already visited Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait, as well as Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Turkey. His recent trip to Bahrain marked the first visit by an Iranian minister since the two countries severed ties in 2016.
In contrast, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of the Iranian parliament, adopted a more assertive tone, urging Gulf states to focus on halting the “Zionist war machine” rather than making what he called “baseless claims” on Iran’s territorial integrity.
