ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Saudi delegation arrived in Iran on Saturday to discuss the reopening of diplomatic missions, two days after a landmark meeting in between their foreign ministers in Beijing.
The visit is the first of its kind since regional foes Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to restore diplomatic ties under a China-brokered deal last month.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry, as cited by Saudi Press Agency (SPA), said a “technical delegation” had arrived in Iran to discuss the reopening of diplomatic missions after ties were severed seven years ago.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian met in the Chinese capital on Thursday to activate the deal.
In a joint statement released following the meeting, both sides agreed to reopen their diplomatic missions within the next two months as well as flights between the countries. Saturday’s meeting is likely the first of several aimed at reopening the embassies in Riyadh and Tehran, as well as the consulates in Jeddah and Mashhad.
“The two sides also agreed to enhance their cooperation in everything that would achieve security and stability in the region,” Thursday’s joint statement added.
Both nations have supported opposing forces in several conflict zones across the region, most notably in Yemen, where Iran backs the Houthi rebels while Saudi Arabia leads a military coalition supporting the government. Both Riyadh and Tehran have also sought to create their own spheres of influence in Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq.
The Sunni kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Shiite-majority Iran had rocky relations since 1979, when Shiite revolutionaries came to power in Iran and pledged to export their revolution to the world, including Gulf countries.
Diplomatic ties were cut in 2016 when Iranian protestors attacked Saudi diplomatic missions in retaliation to the Sunni kingdom's execution of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.
The visit is the first of its kind since regional foes Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to restore diplomatic ties under a China-brokered deal last month.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry, as cited by Saudi Press Agency (SPA), said a “technical delegation” had arrived in Iran to discuss the reopening of diplomatic missions after ties were severed seven years ago.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian met in the Chinese capital on Thursday to activate the deal.
In a joint statement released following the meeting, both sides agreed to reopen their diplomatic missions within the next two months as well as flights between the countries. Saturday’s meeting is likely the first of several aimed at reopening the embassies in Riyadh and Tehran, as well as the consulates in Jeddah and Mashhad.
“The two sides also agreed to enhance their cooperation in everything that would achieve security and stability in the region,” Thursday’s joint statement added.
Both nations have supported opposing forces in several conflict zones across the region, most notably in Yemen, where Iran backs the Houthi rebels while Saudi Arabia leads a military coalition supporting the government. Both Riyadh and Tehran have also sought to create their own spheres of influence in Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq.
The Sunni kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Shiite-majority Iran had rocky relations since 1979, when Shiite revolutionaries came to power in Iran and pledged to export their revolution to the world, including Gulf countries.
Diplomatic ties were cut in 2016 when Iranian protestors attacked Saudi diplomatic missions in retaliation to the Sunni kingdom's execution of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.
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