Tehran: Iran and Saudi Arabia are prepared to advance their reconciliation negotiations, the Iranian foreign minister said on Thursday, more than a year after they first started and six years after the two adversaries severed ties.
Five rounds of negotiations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which back opposite sides in different regional wars, have taken place in Iraq since April of last year.
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian stated in an interview with Iran’s national media that “progress has been made in these negotiations.”
The Saudi side is prepared to advance the talks to the political and public level, the Iraqi foreign minister Fuad Hussein stated in a telegram sent to Iran last week.The chief diplomat for Iran pointed out that prior rounds had mostly involved security officers.
We stated that we were ready for the political stage of the negotiations to begin, he continued.
In 2016, when the kingdom executed Shia cleric Nimr al Nimr, demonstrators assaulted Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. In response, Riyadh severed ties with Tehran.
Amir-Abdollahian expressed his expectation that “regular diplomatic connections between Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran” will result from talks with Riyadh. Tehran government representatives have previously stated that political negotiations may produce better and quicker outcomes.
