TEHRAN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th July, 2022) There are no current diplomatic negotiations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the director-general of the Gulf region at the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Alireza Enayati, told Sputnik.
Earlier, several Arab news media reported, citing sources, that the negotiations on security issues between Iran and Saudi Arabia had been concluded and the parties had began to schedule meetings at the diplomatic level.
"Not yet," Enayati said, commenting on whether there are any bilateral diplomatic talks.
He explained that a meeting between the foreign ministers of both countries has not been planned yet.
Relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia soured in January 2016 following Riyadh's decision to execute Shia cleric Ayatollah Nimr al-Nimr, who questioned the Gulf monarchy's authority. On the same day, crowds of Iranians broke into the territory of Saudi Arabia's embassy in Tehran and consulate in Mashhad. In response, Riyadh severed diplomatic relations with Tehran.
In the spring of 2021, Iran and Saudi Arabia began negotiations to settle the controversies in bilateral relations. They held four rounds of talks in Baghdad to find ways of normalizing relations and resolving all bilateral issues.
