Iran Vice President: Raisi Accepts Invitation to Visit Saudi Arabia

Gulf

April 4th, 4:33am

London, Tehran – Asharq Al-Awsat

A handout picture provided by the Iranian presidency shows Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi meeting with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi (not pictured) in Tehran on March 4, 2023. (Iranian Presidency / AFP)

Iranian Vice President Mohammad Mokhber revealed that President Ebrahim Raisi has accepted an invitation to visit Saudi Arabia. He made the announcement hours after Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian held telephone talks on Sunday. The FMs discussed the future steps that will be taken after the Kingdom and Iran agreed to normalize relations through a China-mediated deal. Mokhber told Iran’s Mehr news agency that the presidency’s “main strategy is improving relations with regional countries.” The rapprochement is not a “coincidence” but a product of planning “that should have taken place at the right moment, and this is what’s happening.” Riyadh did not comment on the report on Raisi’s invitation. Saudi Arabia and Iran announced in March that they had agreed to restore their diplomatic ties. The move was widely welcomed on the regional and international scenes.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4252156/iran-vice-president-raisi-accepts-invitation-visit-saudi-arabia