Iran and Saudi Arabia will reopen their embassies in Riyadh and Tehran by May 9, Director General of Iran's Foreign Ministry Office for Persian Gulf Affairs Alireza Enayati told IRNA on Monday.
"According to the agreements reached, the embassies of the two countries will reopen before May 9," Enayati said. He expressed hope that the consulates general in Jeddah and Mashhad will also reopen by then.
Enayati positively assessed the resumption of diplomatic relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia and noted the great potential for their cooperation in the fields of defense and energy. In addition, according to the director of the department, "a meeting of the foreign ministers of the two countries and a visit of President of the Islamic Republic Ebrahim Raisi to Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE are on the agenda". At the same time, he denied reports that Iran had been invited to the Arab League summit.
On March 10, Tehran and Riyadh agreed to restore diplomatic relations and reopen embassies within two months. On April 6, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian met with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud in Beijing. A joint statement was issued following the talks. The two sides, in particular, confirmed earlier agreements on opening embassies and consulates, the intention to hold consultations to expand cooperation, resume flights and facilitate the process of issuing visas.
Relations between Riyadh and Tehran deteriorated in March 2015 with the start of the Saudi-led coalition's military operation in Yemen against Ansar Allah (Houthis). In January 2016, after the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad were attacked by crowds of protesters outraged by the execution in Riyadh of Shiite preacher Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, the kingdom broke off diplomatic relations with Iran.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Based on materials from TASS