Iran reopened its embassy in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday after seven years of closure, nearly three months after the two countries agreed to restore bilateral ties under a Chinese-brokered deal, Reuters reports.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Alireza Bigdeli and Saudi Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Consular Affairs Ali Al-Yousef cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony in the Saudi capital of Riyadh.
Bigdeli and Iranian Charge d'Affaires Hassan Zarnegar addressed the opening ceremony.
Bigdeli highlighted the importance of the occasion for the relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, saying that, with the re-hoisting of the flag of Iran in Saudi Arabia and vice versa, the cooperation between the two countries enters a new era.
Zarnegar thanked China and other countries for their efforts in improving relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
"Thanks to China and other countries that have a role to find a major way for Iran and Saudi Arabia to understand each other, and now we started our relation and reopened our relation. I'm delighted that China also has good efforts and cooperation in these fields," he said.
In March, Saudi Arabia and Iran held dialog in Beijing and reached a groundbreaking agreement to resume diplomatic relations and reopen their embassies and missions.
According to the trilateral statement jointly issued by China, Saudi Arabia and Iran, the latter two agreed to iron out their disagreements through dialog and diplomacy, and in light of their brotherly ties, adhering to the principles and objectives of the Charters of the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and international conventions and norms.
The reopening of the Saudi embassy in Iran is currently under active preparation, and the specific opening date has not yet been announced.
