Riyadh, June 6 (EFE).- Iran’s embassy in Saudi Arabia reopened on Tuesday, marking another milestone in the rapprochement between the two nations.
Saudi state television channel al-Hadath broadcast footage of the reopening of the Iranian embassy in Riyadh
“The embassy’s reopening comes after a Chinese-brokered agreement that was reached in March between Saudi Arabia and Iran, aimed at reestablishing diplomatic relations between Tehran and Riyadh following a seven-year period without any formal ties,” Al-Arabiya television reported.
Iran’s consulate in the Saudi port city of Jeddah is to resume operations this week, officials in Tehran said.
“We consider today an important day in the relations of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Alireza Bigdeli said during the flag-raising ceremony at the embassy in Riyadh.
“The cooperation between the countries is entering a new era,” he added, according to PressTV, an Iranian state-owned network that broadcasts in English and French.
Iran named veteran diplomat Alireza Enayati as its new ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
Enayati’s experience includes service as Tehran’s envoy to Kuwait and several years as head of the Persian Gulf desk at the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
“Saudi Arabia severed ties with Iran in 2016 following an attack by pro-regime protesters on its embassy in Tehran and consulate in Mashhad,” Al-Arabiya said Tuesday.
Those protests followed the Saudi government’s execution of a prominent Shia Muslim cleric.
The re-establishment of Saudi-Iranian diplomatic ties opened the door to re-admission of Syria to the Arab League after a 12-year suspension and normalization talks between Iran and Egypt, while also giving impetus to peace negotiations in Yemen.
Iran has also proposed the creation of a regional naval alliance to boost security in the northern Indian Ocean, inviting Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrein, and Oman to take part.
EFE
sa-ar-rsm/dr
