Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Mohammad-Ali Hosseini has advised the U.S. President to avoid using unwise, legally unfounded rhetoric regarding the detention of 15 British soldiers for their illegal entry into Iran's territorial waters. In a statement released late on Sunday by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Hosseini also recommended that the U.S. president listen and pay attention to what "his own government's Under-Secretary of States has said." Hosseini's remark was an apparent reference to Under-Secretary of State Nicholas Burns testimony on Thursday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee when he said the U.S. did not seek to provoke confrontation with Iran. The response by Tehran to Bush's stance over the British sailors' detention also reflected Iran's view that such comments by U.S. officials could unnecessarily bring closer the already volatile relations between the two countries to a critical, dangerous stage.
George W. Bush on Saturday labeled Iran's detention of 15 British Royal Navy personnel as "inexcusable" and the detainees as "hostages" after British Prime Minister Tony Blair sought support from Washington over UK troops' violation of international laws and regulations by trespassing into Iranian territory in the Persian Gulf.
Earlier on Sunday at a press conference, Hosseini had said Tehran was waiting to see a change in London's behavior and a reasonable approach toward its recent tension with Tehran. "We announced, in the statement, that two British vessels with 15 servicemen aboard trespassed into Iran's territorial waters on 23 March and reminded them of their similar actions in the past. We warned them against repeating such illegal moves in the future," Hosseini added.