CAIRO: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araqchi discussed developments in the region at a meeting in Riyadh on Wednesday, the Saudi state news agency (SPA) reported.

Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia has had a political rapprochement with Tehran in recent years, which has helped ease regional tensions, but relations remain difficult. Speaking earlier, a senior Iranian official said Araqchi would discuss discuss bilateral issues and efforts to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon and Gaza on his visit, adding that he will also visit Qatar later in the day.

“I hope that these consultations can lead to better conditions for Palestine and Lebanon and establish peace in the region,” Araghchi told Iranian state television upon his arrival in Riyadh.

The Middle East has been on edge awaiting Israel’s response to an Iranian missile strike last week, which Tehran carried out in retaliation for Israel’s escalation against Hezbollah in Lebanon, in a conflict running in parallel to the Gaza conflict.

Saudi analyst asserts Riyadh’s airspace won’t be allowed to attack Iran

Earlier this week, Tehran told Gulf Arab states it would be “unacceptable” if they allowed use of their airspace or military bases against Iran and warned that any such move would draw a response, a senior Iranian official said.

“Saudi will confirm that it will not allow any party to use its airspace to attack the other and will also agree to any call for a ceasefire in Lebanon or Gaza,” Ali Shihabi, a Saudi analyst close to the government, said.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said on X that Araghchi’s visit would focus on stopping “the Israeli regime’s genocide & aggression” and aimed to “alleviate the pain and suffering of our brothers and sisters in Gaza and Lebanon”.

Israel has been waging a year-long conflict against Hamas in Gaza that started on Oct 7, 2023. Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, began firing on northern Israel in the wake of that attack, and since last month Israel has significantly ramped up its strikes targeting Hezbollah leaders and infrastructure. Both Hamas and Hezbollah are part of Iran’s “axis of resistance” in the region.

In Beirut on Friday, Araghchi said Tehran supports efforts for a “simultaneous” ceasefire in Lebanon and the Palestinian territory. The Islamic republic called Hamas’s Oct 7, 2023, raid on Israel “a turning point in the history of the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people against Israel”.

Restored ties

Iran and Saudi Arabia resumed relations in March 2023 under a surprise China-brokered deal following a seven-year rupture.

Iran has repeatedly accused its arch-foe Israel of committing genocide and war crimes since the Gaza conflict began. Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, paused US-brokered talks on recognising Israel after the Gaza conflict broke out.

Saudi officials said they wanted a pathway towards a Palestinian state as a condition of normalisation. But last month, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, toughened his tone, explicitly saying that an “independent Palestinian state” was necessary.

Since the March 2023 Iranian-Saudi rapprochement was announced, the regional powers have intensified their contacts despite supporting different camps in several conflicts, most notably in Syria and Yemen.

The two exchanged ambassadors and visits of foreign ministers before the late Ebrahim Raisi made the first visit by an Iranian president to the kingdom in 20 years to attend a joint Arab-Islamic summit to discuss the Gaza conflict last November.

Published in Dawn, October 10th, 2024