Dubai: Last week’s deal in Beijing during the National People’s Congress was a big diplomatic gain for China as Gulf governments see the US quietly withdrawing from the Middle East. Diplomats have been working to settle the yearslong Yemen war, in which Iran and Saudi Arabia are deeply involved.
Moreover, China facilitated the settlement, and the two countries issued a joint communique. Chinese official media delayed reporting the deal.
Iranian official media broadcast meeting photos and video from China. .
“After executing the decision, the foreign ministries of both nations will meet to prepare for ambassador exchange,” Iranian state television stated. The four-day talks were added.
. Saudi state media repeated the Iranian remark shortly after.
Iran-Saudi relations are tense. After Iranian demonstrators stormed Saudi diplomatic posts in 2016, the kingdom cut ties. Saudi Arabia murdered a prominent Shiite cleric days before, sparking the protests.
Since the U.S. unilaterally withdrew from Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018, Middle East tensions have skyrocketed. .
Moreover, Western governments and analysts suspect Tehran for the strike, which Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels initially claimed. Iran long disputed the strike. It denies other Islamic Republic-attributed attacks.
The internationally recognised administration fled to Saudi Arabia after the Houthis took Sanaa in September 2014. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition with U.S. weapons and intelligence joined Yemen’s exiled government. .
Despite diplomatic attempts, Yemen’s longest cease-fire expired in October. That raised fears of conflict escalation. Fighting in Yemen has killed over 150,000 individuals, including 14,500 civilians.
Iran and the U.S. have been negotiating in Oman for months. Some wanted a deal before Ramadan, which begins later in March.
The U.S. Navy and its partners have confiscated weapons shipments from Iran to Yemen. Despite weapons captured from the Houthis, Iran denies arming them. The UN bans weaponry to the Houthis.
