Touching upon the latest developments concerning Iran-Saudi ties, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Kanaani said that the implementation of consensus between the two states has had a proper pace and there have not been any obstacles in the way of carrying out their mutual agreement,
IRNA reports.
The spokesman also noted that Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister is to visit Iran in the near future, adding that the Saudi embassy and consulate in Iran will probably open.
On the resumption of ties between Iran and Bahrain, he stated that Manama has declared its readiness to this end and that Iran is keen on developing ties with all Islamic and regional nations.
According to the official, Bahrain and Iran keep on indirect negotiations; thus, it is expected that the positive trend in the region would lead to the restoration of ties between the two states.
Regarding the speculations about Iran-US negotiations in one of the neighboring countries, he said that Iran welcomes the efforts made by Oman a few weeks ago.
Exchange of messages continues and the foreign ministry uses all the facilities available under Iran's principled policies to secure national interests, he said adding that Iran has taken advantage of Oman's capacity as a friendly country.
The basis of negotiations for the lifting of sanctions is exactly the same as the signed agreement, and media speculations about a temporary agreement and similar cases that replace the JCPOA are rejected, he stated.
Commenting on Iran’s maritime coalition with some of the Persian Gulf states, he said that Iran’s principle in the Persian Gulf is collective cooperation aiming at safeguarding the regional states.
Iran believes that security should be provided by the regional countries, and the presence of trans-regional forces is a security threat to the region, Kanaani said.
Iran has always been against the presence of trans-regional forces in regional waterways, he stressed.
Regarding the repayment of part of Iraq’s arrears to Iran, Kanaani said Iran expected the debt to be repaid according to the agreement reached between the two countries, but unfortunately, that did not happen.
“On many occasions, we treated the Iraqi side, as a friendly and brotherly country, with tolerance,” he said. “One should know that adherence to agreements is necessary for the establishment and continuity of constructive relations between the two sides.”
