Saudi, Iran foreign ministers meet in Tehran amid warming ties

Tehran, Iran — The foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia met in Tehran as longtime rivals seek to end diplomatic rifts and restore ties after seven years of tension.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdrahian welcomed Saudi Arabia’s Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud at the foreign ministry on Saturday.

Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat also met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who had just completed a tour of Latin America.

Both ministers welcomed the restoration of diplomatic relations, stating that the restoration of diplomatic relations is of utmost importance to improve the security of the entire region.

“Islamic Republic of Iran has never equated security with militarism. I think it’s a comprehensive concept that includes.”

He added that he had discussed a wide range of issues with Prince Faisal, including dealing with Saudi tourists and pilgrims who may be interested in visiting Iran, as well as trade relations and joint investments.

Bearing in mind the interests of both countries, Prince Faisal said that “mutual respect, non-interference in the internal affairs of the two countries, and commitment to the United Nations Charter” will be central to future bilateral relations.

“I would also like to highlight the bilateral talks on cooperation on ensuring maritime security and reducing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,” he said.

“Both sides are serious about resuming diplomatic relations and want to move forward despite having nothing to do with each other for the past seven years,” Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabari said.

“The area of ​​expansion is not only political, but the economic side of the relationship is also very important. Iran wants to expand its trade with Saudi Arabia, reaching $1 billion a year. Currently about $15 million. ‘, said Jabari, reporting from Tehran.

Abdulaziz Arghassian, a Saudi foreign policy researcher at Lancaster University in the UK, said the economic incentives are big.

“I think what Saudi Arabia gets out of this is that they want regional stability to start building on the projects and economic visions that the country has. I think they understand that economic projects cannot be realized in unstable areas,” he told Al Jazeera.

“Trusting each other is not enough. I think the Saudi-Iranian relationship is in the realm of giving both countries an incentive to de-escalate tensions if they arise in the future. But I think that’s how they deal with these conflicts and why they de-escalate, and that’s where the economic problem is. [factors in]”

Chinese Brokered Transactions

The Iranian and Saudi ministers last met in early June in South Africa on the sidelines of the BRICS conference, an economic bloc made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

But it will be the first visit by Saudi officials to Iran since 2016, when Riyadh cut diplomatic ties in the wake of Saudi Arabia’s execution of Shia religious leader Sheikh Al-Nimr and attacks on diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad. Become.

Tehran and Riyadh agreed to reopen their embassies within two months as part of a China-brokered agreement signed in Beijing on March 10, but although diplomatic ties have been restored, the embassy building proved more difficult to resume.

Iran reopened its embassy in Riyadh on June 6 and the next day its consulate general in Jeddah and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) mission.

The Iranian government has reportedly elected Alireza Enayati, a former special envoy to Kuwait and undersecretary for regional affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as its ambassador to the Kingdom. However, Enayati was absent from the reopening ceremony and Iran has not confirmed that he has started working at the embassy in Riyadh.

The Iranian embassy was inaugurated by Alireza Bigderi, Under Secretary for Consular Affairs, who said: “We are witnessing the opening of a new chapter in our bilateral and regional relations.”

Meanwhile, it is unclear when the Saudi embassy will reopen. Amira Rabdrahian previously said Saudi Arabia had elected an ambassador to Tehran, but the kingdom had yet to officially confirm the ambassador’s identity.

According to unconfirmed reports, the Saudi team has been operating out of a luxury hotel in the Iranian capital for several weeks as the two countries work toward the official reopening of their embassy buildings.

The Saudi Foreign Minister’s visit to Tehran comes a week after US Secretary of State Anthony Brinken visited Riyadh for a high-level meeting.

Shortly after, it was confirmed that Iraq had been able to pay off its substantial $2.7 billion debt to Iran caused by imports of natural gas.

The US had previously blocked the transfer of the money under sanctions unilaterally imposed on Iran after then-President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal in 2018. The US government said the funds could only be used for “humanitarian and other non-sanctioned transactions.”

Part of the funds will go towards the costs of Iranian pilgrims who will take part in the Saudi pilgrimage to Mecca, with €80 million ($87 million) reportedly being transferred to the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank’s Iranian mission. there is

Meanwhile, media reports say Iran and the United States are holding indirect talks in Oman aimed at de-escalating tensions, which could lead to an agreement on Tehran’s nuclear program, the exchange of prisoners of war and the release of frozen Iranian funds. have a nature.

At the same time, a deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia has begun to ease tensions across the region, including in Yemen, where the two sides have supported opposing sides in a devastating war.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, backed by the Iranian government, was welcomed back into the Arab League last month. Saudi Arabia, along with several other Arab countries, has supported rebels in Syria.