Iran and Saudi Arabia reached a deal in March to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and missions in the two countries within two months….reports Asian Lite News
An Iranian official announced that trade between Tehran and Saudi Arabia has resumed as the two Arab countries stepped up efforts to normalise ties following a China-brokered deal in March.
Trade Minister Reza Fatemi-Amin made the remarks to mediapersons on Tuesday when asked to comment on the agreement reached between Tehran and Riyadh to normalise bilateral relations in March, Xinhua news agency reported.
On Sunday, Iran’s Roads and Urban Development Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash announced that the country has received a proposal from Saudi Arabia to launch three regular flights between the two countries per week, in addition to the Haj flights.
Iran and Saudi Arabia reached a deal in March to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and missions in the two countries within two months.
In a meeting held in Beijing on April 6, 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.
Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Iran in 2016 in response to the attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Tehran after the kingdom executed a Shia cleric.
Meanwhile, United States is not thrilled about the Chinese-brokered deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Washington sees its general plans for the Middle East as failing. A State Department spokesman, commenting on the Riyadh- Tehran accord, said: “If this dialogue leads to concrete action by Iran to curb its destabilizing activities in the region, including the proliferation of dangerous weapons, then of course, we would welcome that.”
Furthermore, the US is not happy about China’s growing influence in the Middle East, while Washington’s influence diminishes. It realizes that it is now unlikely to achieve a rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Israel, while Iran forges ahead with enriching uranium to nuclear weapons grade, and instead of facing increased international isolation, it is improving its relations with a formerly implacable rival.