Iran's First Vice President, Ishaq Jahangiri, confirmed his country's desire to urgently reach an understanding with Saudi Arabia but urged the kingdom to halt its "destructive measures." In a statement made on Friday during a meeting via the "Clubhouse" app, Jahangiri said, "We want to urgently reach an understanding with Saudi Arabia, but it must stop its destructive actions in the region."
Jahangiri emphasized that "Iran has a significant and important role in solving regional issues, and this role must be respected." He also referred to the escalation between the two countries in early 2016, labeling the incident of storming the Saudi embassy in Tehran as "a betrayal of the Iranian people."
There is significant tension between Saudi Arabia and Iran due to several sharp disagreements, particularly the war in Yemen and the attacks on January 2, 2016, on the Saudi embassy in Tehran and the Saudi consulate in Mashhad, following Saudi authorities' execution of 47 individuals for terrorism, including the prominent Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.
There have been no official diplomatic relations between Tehran and Riyadh since 2016, but in recent weeks, there has been an exchange of messages regarding their desire to resolve disputes.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman previously stated in an interview aired by the country's official media on April 27 that the kingdom aspires to establish a "good" relationship with Iran, considering it a neighboring country and wanting it to be "prosperous." However, he acknowledged that there are "issues" between the two sides and that Saudi Arabia is working with its partners to resolve them.
Mohammed bin Salman explained, "Our problem is Iran's negative actions, whether through its nuclear program, its support for unlawful militias in some regional countries, or its ballistic missile program."
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh issued a statement commenting on bin Salman’s remarks, indicating that Iran welcomes the change in tone from the kingdom.
