THE Saudi Arabian and Iranian foreign ministers spoke by phone to mark the beginning of Ramadan and have agreed to meet “soon” to start the process of re-opening embassies and consulates, according to Saudi Arabia’s foreign affairs ministry.
The Saudi foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, had a call with his counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and the pair “exchanged greetings and congratulations on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan”, which begins on Thursday in both countries, the ministry said.
“The two ministers agreed to hold a bilateral meeting soon, to pave the way for the reopening of embassies and consulates between the two countries,” the Saudi Arabian foreign ministry said in a statement on Twitter.
The ministers’ expected meeting is said to be the next step in the normalisation of relations between the two countries following the surprise Chinese-brokered rapprochement announced on March 10, which is expected to see diplomatic ties restored seven years after they were severed.
Riyadh cut relations with Tehran after Iranian protesters attacked Saudi Arabian diplomatic missions in the country in 2016 following Saudi Arabia’s execution of a prominent Shia Muslim scholar – just one in a series of flashpoints between the two longstanding regional rivals.
Iran and Saudi Arabia have supported rival sides in several conflict zones across the Middle East, including in Yemen, where the Houthi rebels are backed by Tehran and where Riyadh leads a military coalition supporting the government.
