“The two sides emphasized the firm principle of the Gulf Cooperation Council on respecting international legitimacy and solving disputes peacefully,” the two countries said in a joint communiqué. The communiqué was issued at the conclusion of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah’s landmark visit to Bahrain and his meeting with King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa.

“The two sides expressed their continued desire on reaching a peaceful solution,” the communiqué said and urged Iran to continue dialogue with the international community.

Meanwhile, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has approved the sites for new uranium enrichment plants in Iran, a close aide said on Monday, despite growing world pressure to stop the sensitive nuclear work.

Ahmadinejad’s senior adviser Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi told the ILNA news agency that the president had “approved the locations of the new nuclear sites” and the “construction at these sites will start with his order.” He said that the designs of the new plants were currently under study but did not specify how many new facilities had been approved.