Iran benefits from the Algiers Accord signed in 1975 between Iraq and Iran. The agreement, which was signed between Saddam Hussein — then Iraq's vice president — and the shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, provided for determining the border between Iraq and Iran at the lowest point of the Shatt al-Arab, known as the thalweg line.
The local government in Basra did not address the neglect involving the loss of Iraqi territory. It is, however, seeking to establish a neutral zone of 400 acres, part of it in Iran's Khuzestan province, part of it in Basra.
Basra Gov. Majid al-Nasrawi said in a statement Dec. 4 that the establishment of this zone requires the passage of a bill by parliament.
Iranian Border Guard Commander Brig. Gen. Qassem Rezayee did not hide the political objectives behind the naval maneuvers at the Shatt al-Arab when he said Dec. 11, “These maneuvers confirm that the two countries will not allow any third party to intervene in the security affairs of the region, to sow the seeds of discord and division between our countries.”
This was a clear message to the Gulf states in regard to the Iranian influence at the Shatt al-Arab.
As long as the Iraqi government neglects protecting its sovereignty at the Shatt al-Arab, Iran will have the right to venture inside Iraqi borders, while the government continues to shy away from taking a firmer position.
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