Saudi Foreign Minister Visits Tehran to Strengthen Relations

Desk

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Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has arrived in Tehran as part of the ongoing efforts to develop relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia since the restoration of formal diplomatic ties in March.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian warmly welcomed his Saudi counterpart, and both ministers are scheduled to hold bilateral talks followed by a joint press conference on Saturday.

The Saudi minister may also have a meeting with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who recently concluded a tour of Latin America.

Amirabdollahian and bin Farhan had last met in early June in South Africa on the sidelines of a meeting of BRICS, the economic bloc consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

This is the first visit by a Saudi official to Iran since 2016 when Riyadh broke diplomatic relations after its diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad were attacked following the execution of a Shia religious leader in Saudi Arabia.

Both Tehran and Riyadh had agreed to reopen their embassies within two months as part of a China-brokered deal signed on March 10. While diplomatic relations have been restored, reopening the embassy buildings has proved challenging.

Iran reopened its embassy in Riyadh on June 6, followed by its consulate general in Jeddah and its mission to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) a day later.

Reports suggest that Alireza Enayati, a former envoy to Kuwait and a foreign ministry deputy for regional affairs, has been selected as Iran’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia. However, Enayati was not present at the reopening ceremony, and Iran has not confirmed whether he has started his work at the embassy in Riyadh.

The Iranian embassy was inaugurated by Alireza Bigdeli, a deputy foreign minister for consular affairs, who expressed optimism about the new chapter in bilateral and regional relations.

The reopening of the Saudi embassy remains uncertain. Amirabdollahian had previously stated that Saudi Arabia has selected an ambassador to Tehran, but the kingdom has yet to publicly confirm the ambassador’s identity.