Middle East
Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran Ali Shamkhani (R) shaking hands with the Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Wang Yi (C) during a meeting with Saudi Arabia's National Security Advisor and Minister of State Musaad bin Mohammed al-Aiban (L). Photo: Nournews agency/AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United States on Friday cautiously welcomed a China-brokered deal to restore ties between regional archrivals Iran and Saudi Arabia, saying it looks favorably upon "any efforts" to foster peace in the Middle East.
Tehran and Riyadh announced on Friday they were restoring ties after decades of bitter relations that culminated in severing diplomatic ties in 2016. The agreement followed five days of talks in Beijing between Iran's Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali Shamkhani and Saudi Arabia's National Security Advisor Musaad bin Mohammed al-Aiban.
"As a result of the talks, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia agreed to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and agencies within two months," the two regional powerhouses said in a joint statement, adding that their foreign ministers will meet to discuss the implementation of the decision and to exchange ambassadors.
Washington said the rapprochement falls in line with President Joe Biden's policy for the Middle East.
"Generally speaking, we welcome any efforts to help end the war in Yemen and de-escalate tensions in the Middle East Region," National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said. "De-escalation and diplomacy together with deterrence are key pillars of the policy President Biden outlined during his visit to the region last year."
The resumption of diplomatic relations between Tehran and Riyadh could bring major change in Yemen, a country torn by a brutal civil war in which Iran is arming Houthi rebels while Saudi Arabia leads a military coalition backing the government.
However, Kirby expressed concern about Iran’s seriousness in fulfilling their part of the deal.
“It really does remain to be seen whether the Iranians are going to honor their side of the deal,” he said.
According to Kirby, Saudi Arabia kept the US updated about the talks to resume ties with Iran but Washington wasn't "directly involved."
Baghdad previously hosted five rounds of talks beginning in 2021 between the regional powers which brought them closer to the final agreement reached in Beijing. Oman also mediated discussions.
In their joint statement, Iran and Saudi Arabia said they were "grateful" to Iraq and Oman.
The UN Secretary-General thanked China for hosting the talks while also praising Iran and Oman in a statement reacting to the normalization of relations.
"Good neighborly relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia are essential for the stability of the Gulf region," said Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, while expressing the UN chief's "readiness to use his good offices to advance regional dialogue further and ensure durable peace and security in the Gulf region."
The Sunni kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Shiite-majority Iran have 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.
They severed ties in 2016 when Iranian protestors attacked the Saudi diplomatic mission in Tehran in retaliation to the kingdom's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian hailed the restoration of ties, describing it as a step in the right direction and one that will boost the capacities of both countries.
"The neighborhood policy, as the key axis for the Iranian government's foreign policy, is strongly moving in the right direction and the diplomatic apparatus is actively behind the preparation of more regional steps," Amir-Abdollahian said on Twitter, adding that he received calls of congratulations from the Iraqi and Qatari foreign ministers.
China entered the process when Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi visited Beijing in February, according to Shamkhani. The "negotiations between Mr Xi Jinping, president and China, and our president, paved the way for new and very serious negotiations between Iran and Saudi delegations,” he said.
In January, Amir-Abdollahian said that the reopening of consulates in the cities of Jeddah and Mashhad will be one of the first steps in restoring diplomatic ties.
Iraq's foreign ministry said it welcomed the agreement as a "new page of diplomatic relations" that was built on the "solid base" established through Baghdad's mediation.
Comments
Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.
To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.
We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.
Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.
Post a comment