Date of New Round of Iran-Saudi Talks Uncertain: Spokesman
The spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry said no date has been fixed for the sixth round of negotiations between Tehran and Riyadh.
Speaking to reporters at a weekly press conference on Tuesday, Saeed Khatibzadeh said the date of the sixth round of talks with Saudi Arabia has not been set yet.
“We should observe how the agreements that have been made will go on,” he said.
Pointing to the “practical agreements” on the annual Hajj pilgrimage, the spokesman expressed hope for a calm and trouble-free trip for Iranian pilgrims.
The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is working with the other organizations to prepare the ground for a favorable Hajj season in cooperation with Saudi Arabia, he stated.
The 5th round of talks between senior representatives from Iran and Saudi Arabia was held in Baghdad in April.
Diplomatic relations between Tehran and Riyadh soured following the January 2016 execution of Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, an outspoken critic of the Saudi monarchy, in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh cut ties with Tehran afterwards, responding to attacks by angry protesters on its embassy in the Iranian capital.
Saudi Arabia’s military campaign against Yemen as well as the death of hundreds of Iranian Hajj pilgrims in a deadly crush in Saudi Arabia’s Mina in September 2015 had prepared the ground for the deterioration of tensions between Tehran and Riyadh.