Saudi team in Iran after historic meet

RIYADH — A Saudi delegation has arrived in Teheran to discuss the reopening of the kingdom's diplomatic missions in the Islamic republic, two days after a historic meeting in Beijing between their foreign ministers.

In the meeting in Beijing on Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud signed a joint statement, announcing the resumption of diplomatic relations with immediate effect.

The Saudi delegation arrived in Iran on Saturday evening to discuss the reopening of its missions after a seven-year absence, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said.

Cited by the official Saudi Press Agency, or SPA, the ministry called the visit a part of "implementing the tripartite agreement" reached on March 10 between the two regional powers, brokered by China, to restore ties ruptured in 2016.

During the visit, the Saudi delegation will discuss the mechanism for reopening the country's embassy, and evaluate the situation for the reopening of the Saudi consulate general in the northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad, the Iranian Students' News Agency reported.

Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran in 2016 in response to the attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran after the kingdom executed a Shiite cleric.

The two longtime Middle East rivals have now pledged to work together.

When the two foreign ministers met in Beijing on Thursday, they vowed to bring security and stability to the turbulent Gulf region.

"The two sides emphasized the importance of following up on the implementation of the Beijing Agreement and its activation in a way that expands mutual trust and the fields of cooperation and helps create security, stability and prosperity in the region," a joint statement said.

Embassy to reopen

The rapprochement between mainly Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, and Shiite-majority Iran, at odds with Western governments over its nuclear activities, has the potential to reshape relations across a region characterized by turbulence for decades, analysts said.

Under last month's agreement, the two countries are to reopen their embassies and missions within two months and implement security and economic cooperation deals signed over 20 years ago.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has also been invited by Saudi King Salman to Riyadh, a trip planned to take place after the holy fasting month of Ramadan, which ends later in April.

Rabha Saif Allam, a specialist in Middle Eastern affairs at the Cairo Center for Strategic Studies, noted "an acceleration" in the normalization of ties.

She said this means an intensification of meetings "at the economic and security levels", and believes that normalization will be sealed by Raisi's planned visit to Riyadh at the end of April.

Iran and Saudi Arabia have different opinions on many issues, and they also support rival sides in several conflict zones across the region, including in Yemen, where the Houthi militia is backed by Teheran and Riyadh leads a military coalition supporting the government.

In a separate development on Sunday, Saudi and Omani delegations arrived in Yemen's capital Sanaa, Houthi-run media said, to negotiate a permanent cease-fire deal with Houthi officials.

Diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict have multiplied since the Saudi-Iran deal to restore relations. Oman has forged a reputation as a discreet mediator.

Nearly a decade of civil conflict in Yemen has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, both directly and indirectly, and triggered what the United Nations has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

A Yemeni government source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Agence France-Presse that the Saudis and Houthis had agreed in principle on a six-month truce to pave the way for three months of talks on establishing a two-year "transition" for the war-torn country.

On Saturday, Yemen's Houthi group said it had received 13 prisoners of war released by Saudi Arabia. Abdulkadir al-Murtada, the Houthi official in charge of prisoner exchange talks, said in a statement that the group received on Saturday "13 detainees at Sanaa International Airport who were released by the Saudi authorities".

Agencies - Xinhua