Saeed Khatibzadeh, the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, said on Tuesday that "Tehran looks optimistically at dialogue with Saudi Arabia." He indicated that the Iranian government has made good progress in talks with Saudi Arabia, noting that some disagreements may take time to resolve. Khatibzadeh added that Iran aims, through discussions, to "achieve security and peace in the region." He pointed out that Tehran will continue dialogue with Riyadh to reach "positive outcomes."
In mid-June, former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stated in an interview with Al Arabiya that what unites the countries of the region is much greater than what divides them. Ahmadinejad considered the competition between Saudi Arabia and Iran as "harmful to the interests of both parties," emphasizing that the countries are "brothers and neighbors, and the commonalities between them are many times greater than the points of difference." He stressed the need for them to cooperate together to manage the region. He called for the establishment of a "union" among regional countries similar to the European Union, noting that "Europe fought for a long time before eventually reaching the experience of union for the benefit of its peoples."
