March 19, 2023, Tehran: Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has invited Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi to visit the kingdom following the recent China-brokered rapprochement deal between the two countries.
Mohammad Jamshidi, the Iranian president’s deputy chief of staff for political affairs, made the announcement in a post on his Twitter account on Sunday, saying the Saudi king has extended the invitation in a letter.
“In a letter to President Raeisi, the king of Saudi Arabia welcomed the deal between the two brotherly countries (and) invited him to Riyadh,” he said, adding that the Saudi king has called for establishing economic and regional cooperation between the two countries.
The senior Iranian official said Raeisi had welcomed the invitation. The latest invitation is a significant step towards improving ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
After several days of intensive negotiations hosted by China, Iran and Saudi Arabia finally clinched a deal on March 10 to restore diplomatic relations and re-open embassies and missions within two months.
