Amid Chinese-brokered talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran in March, Tehran is poised to reopen its embassy in Riyadh on Tuesday, after seven years of diplomatic shutdowns. AFP.
Bilateral relations between the two regional heavyweights were severed in 2016 when the Saudi embassy in Tehran and the consulate in the northwestern city of Mashhad were attacked during protests against the execution of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.
Iran’s diplomatic mission will return to Riyadh under the leadership of Ali Reza Inayati after being expelled from the world’s largest oil exporter. He was also the Iranian Ambassador to Kuwait.
Tehran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani announced the reopening in a statement on Monday, confirming earlier comments from a diplomatic source in Riyadh.
Kanani said Iran’s embassy in Riyadh, its consulate in Jeddah and its representative office in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) “will be officially reopened on Tuesday and Wednesday”.
According to AFPThe opening ceremony will take place on Tuesday at 6 pm local time in the presence of the newly appointed Iranian ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
However, Saudi authorities have not yet confirmed the reopening of their embassy in Tehran and the selection of an ambassador.
Inayati was named as Iran’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia last month.
According to Iranian media, he previously served as Assistant to the Foreign Minister and Director General of Gulf Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
After years of conflict, the two Middle Eastern countries signed a surprise reconciliation agreement in China on March 10.
Since then, Saudi Arabia has restored ties with Tehran’s ally Syria and stepped up efforts for peace in Yemen, where it has for years led a military coalition against Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
Iran and Saudi Arabia had supported opposing sides in Middle East conflict zones for years before mending the fence.