Iran and Saudi Arabia, who have been regional adversaries for a long time, have declared their intention to restore diplomatic ties and re-establish embassies in each other’s countries after negotiations led by China in Beijing. Both governments made the announcement through their respective state media agencies.

“As a result of the talks, Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to resume diplomatic relations and re-open embassies … within two months,” Iran’s news agency IRNA reported Friday.

Saudi Arabia’s state Saudi Press Agency confirmed the announcement in its own statement.

The statement from Saudi Arabia expressed abundant gratitude towards Beijing for its leadership during the negotiations, CNBC reported.

“In response to the noble initiative of His Excellency President Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, of China’s support for developing good neighborly relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran… The delegations from the two countries held talks during the period 6-10 March 2023 in Beijing,” the SPA statement said.

The statement placed emphasis on the Chinese leader’s responsibility for organizing and facilitating discussions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which Riyadh referred to as a process, “proceeding from their shared desire to resolve the disagreements between them through dialogue and diplomacy, and in light of their brotherly ties.”

Written by staff