Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat is about to visit Tehran, the latest move by the two Middle Eastern rivals to restore diplomatic ties
Posted Date – 06:20 AM, Sat – 6/17/23
Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat is about to visit Tehran, the latest move by the two Middle Eastern rivals to restore diplomatic ties
Tehran: Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat will travel to Tehran, according to an Iranian statement on Friday, the latest move by the two Middle Eastern rivals to restore diplomatic ties.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan will meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabudolashian on Saturday, the statement said.
Prince Faisal is also expected to officially inaugurate the Saudi embassy in Tehran.
Both countries have resumed their diplomatic missions in the other country in recent weeks.
The Iranian foreign minister’s visit follows a visit by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to Saudi Arabia in early June.
In March, Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations and reopen their embassies after seven years of tension.
It was a major diplomatic breakthrough in the Chinese negotiations, reducing the chances of further conflict between Riyadh and Tehran — either directly or by proxy in the region.
After the United States unilaterally withdrew from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018, Iran has been blamed for a series of attacks in recent years, including a 2019 attack on the heart of Saudi Arabia’s oil industry that temporarily halved the country’s crude output .
Relations between Shiite-dominated Iran and Sunni-dominated Saudi Arabia have long been tense.
The kingdom severed ties with Iran in 2016 after protesters invaded a Saudi diplomatic mission in Iran.
Saudi Arabia’s execution of a prominent Shia cleric sparked demonstrations 46 days ago.
