Iran to send delegation to Riyadh to prepare embassy reopening
Iran will send a delegation to Saudi Arabia to make preparations for reopening the Islamic Republic’s embassy in Riyadh as part of measures for resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
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The Iranian state media reported on Sunday that the technical delegation will probably “visit Tehran's embassy in Riyadh and make arrangements for the reopening of Iran's embassy in Saudi Arabia” on April 11.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry said a day earlier that the kingdom’s officials had visited Iran to discuss procedures for reopening Riyadh's diplomatic missions in the Islamic Republic.
The announcement came after the foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia met in the Chinese capital of Beijing on Thursday for the first formal gathering of their top diplomats in more than seven years, and signed a joint statement after holding talks on various issues.
Speaking with reporters in Beijing after the meeting, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani hailed the “very good” negotiations held between Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan in a “totally positive and constructive atmosphere” in the Chinese capital.
As a result of the foreign ministerial meeting, the formal relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia have been officially re-established as of today, Kan’ani noted.
The spokesman highlighted that the two Muslim countries will exchange technical delegations within the next few days to make preparations for the reopening of embassies in Tehran and Riyadh as well as their respective consulates.
On March 10, after several days of intensive negotiations hosted by China, Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to resume their diplomatic relations and reopen their embassies and diplomatic missions after seven years of estrangement.
In a joint statement after signing the agreement, Tehran and Riyadh highlighted the need to respect each others’ national sovereignty and refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of one another.
The two sides agreed to implement a security cooperation agreement signed in April 2001 and another accord reached in May 1998 to boost economic, commercial, investment, technical, scientific, cultural, sports, and youth affairs cooperation.
Much to the dismay of the US and Israel, the rapprochement has the potential to reduce tensions across a region replete with chaos and calamities for decades.
