Iran welcomes Saudi’s readiness to hold talks

Tehran yesterday welcomed Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister’s remarks about the kingdom’s readiness to peacefully resolve differences between the two countries, spokesman of Iran’s Foreign Ministry Saeed Khatibzadeh said.

“It looks like the Saudi officials have begun reforming some of their policies concerning the interaction with some of the Persian Gulf’s littoral countries, having understood that war and bloodshed do not help them out anymore, and also having despaired of their former allies,” Press TV reported Khatibzadeh saying.

Khatibzadeh pointed out, according to Tehran Times, that if Riyadh seriously puts policy reforms on its agenda and concludes that the solution to problems lies in “regional cooperation”, Iran will be the first country to welcome these reforms.

“We have always stressed that regional countries should arrive at a common understanding regarding the regional problems,” he stated, noting that such understanding would help establish a “secure mechanism” that keeps the region safe.

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Iran, he continued, is ready to negotiate with Saudi Arabia if it changes tack, adding that Tehran is ready to address Saudi concerns.

“The Saudis may have some concerns, and by the way, we emphasise that we need to talk about these concerns,” Khatibzadeh said.

“Some concerns may be illusions that open the door to other powers in the region, and we are even willing to talk about such concerns.”

These remarks came after Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal Bin Farhan said that his country was extending its hand to Iran to make peace.