Delegation from Saudi Arabia arrives to visit Iran

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After seven years of diplomatic ice age between Saudi Arabia and Iran, a Saudi Arabian delegation arrived in Tehran on Saturday. As the foreign ministry in Riyadh announced, talks should focus on reopening Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic missions in Iran. The visit is a result of the trilateral agreement between the two regional powers and China signed on March 10, according to the state news agency SPA.

According to SPA, a “technical delegation” from Saudi Arabia has now met with the chief of protocol of Iran’s Foreign Ministry in Tehran to discuss the reopening of the embassy and consulates. He had promised the delegation every support for their mission.

Brokered by China, the two rival regional powers agreed in March to resume diplomatic relations. The foreign ministers of both countries then met in Beijing last Thursday to kickstart the normalization of their relations.

Breakthrough thanks to China

According to current plans, this will be formally sealed during a visit by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (62) to Riyadh at the end of April after the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. The deal was a major breakthrough for Chinese President Xi Jinping, 69, who has been putting increasing pressure on China to take a more active role in international affairs. Internationally, the rapprochement received mostly positive reactions.

In a further sign of rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the foreign ministers of the two rival countries met in Beijing this week.

The rapprochement between Sunni Muslim-majority Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, and Shia-majority Iran, which has been sanctioned by the West for its nuclear program, has the potential to reshape the balance of power in a region ravaged by decades of unrest. China’s success in mediating between the two formerly warring states challenges the US’s role as a traditional mediator between the Middle Eastern powers. (AFP)

Source: Blick