A Saudi delegation arrived in Tehran on Saturday to plan for the reopening of the kingdom’s embassy in the Iranian capital, the latest step in a thaw of relations between the regional rivals.
(Bloomberg) — A Saudi delegation arrived in Tehran on Saturday to plan for the reopening of the kingdom’s embassy in the Iranian capital, the latest step in a thaw of relations between the regional rivals.
The Saudi mission will also look into opening its consulate in the northeastern city of Mashhad, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanaani, said in a news conference on Monday.
An Iranian delegation will visit Saudi Arabia “in the next two, three days” to reopen the Islamic Republic’s own embassy and consulate, he said.
The moves follow a month of breakthrough developments between the kingdom and Iran. The decades-old foes unveiled a China-brokered agreement last month to reestablish diplomatic relations after a seven-year hiatus, followed by a meeting of their foreign ministers in Beijing last week.
“We’re hoping to establish the Iran-Saudi joint economic commission after the reopening of embassies,” Kanaani said, adding that the two countries can exchange public- and private-sector trade delegations in the near future.
Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran in 2016 after protesters in Tehran stormed and set fire to its embassy over the execution of a prominent Saudi Shiite cleric. The rapprochement could help deescalate tensions in the Middle East and end a nine-year proxy war in Yemen.
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