Iran and Saudi Arabia have signed an agreement to resume relations and open embassies within two months. This was reported on March 10 by the agency Tasnim. The agreement was reached following talks between the head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and his Saudi counterpart in Beijing. In the future, the foreign ministers of the two states intend to meet to discuss the implementation of the agreement.
Leading researcher of the Center for Arab and Islamic Studies of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Historical Sciences Boris Dolgov said that the establishment of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia will be an important event for the region.
“For a long time, there was a confrontation between Iran and the KSA, when both sides carried out various measures against each other. This confrontation was due to military, political and religious factors. This is a very important event, especially if we look at it, it happened at the time of the aggravation of the situation in Israel, which threatens Iran and accuses it of trying to obtain nuclear weapons, ”Dolgov told Izvestia.
The expert believes that the event will also weaken the US position in the region and strengthen Muslim unity.
“This is the most important event in the region at the present time, which confirms that Arab-Muslim unity is a phenomenon that is beginning to materialize. The restoration of relations will strengthen the position of both Iran and Saudi Arabia. This is a counterbalance to US policy in the region,” Dolgov said.
Diplomatic relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia were interrupted in 2016 due to attacks on Saudi offices by protesters against the execution of Shiite theologian Nimr al-Nimr.
Earlier, on November 1, 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that Riyadh had passed intelligence to Washington about Iran’s “imminent attack” on targets in Saudi Arabia. It was noted that the purpose of Iran allegedly is to divert attention from internal protests.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry on November 2 denied allegations of an impending attack on Saudi Arabia. Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said that Iran continues the policy of good neighborliness based on mutual respect and within the framework of international principles and rules. According to him, the republic will continue to establish constructive interaction with its neighbors.
On November 3, experts told Izvestia that reports that Iran might attack Saudi Arabia were a provocation that Washington intended to use to increase pressure on Tehran.
