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, the talks should be regarding reopening Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic missions in Iran.
The visit is a result of the trilateral agreement between the two regional powers and China concluded on March 10, the state news agency SPA quoted the ministry as saying.
According to SPA, a “technical delegation” from Saudi Arabia has now met the chief of protocol at the Iranian Foreign Ministry in Tehran to discuss the reopening of the embassy and consulates. He had promised the delegation any support for their mission.
Mediated 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 initiate the normalization of their relations.
According to current plans, this is to be formally sealed during a visit by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to Riyadh at the end of April following the Islamic month of fasting, Ramadan.
The deal was a major breakthrough for Chinese President Xi Jinping, who has stepped up his push for China to play a more active role in international affairs. Internationally, the rapprochement met with largely positive reactions.
The rapprochement between Sunni-Muslim-majority Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, and Shia-majority Iran, which is under Western sanctions for its nuclear program, has the potential to reshape the balance of power in a region marked by decades of unrest. China’s success in mediating between the two previously warring states is challenging the role of the US as the traditional mediator between the powers in the Middle East.
