Director of the GCC Affairs Department Alireza Enayati at the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that Iran was making efforts to reopen its embassy in Riyadh and its consulate in Jeddah before the Hajj season.
For his part, Iranian Minister of Economy Ehsan Khandozi said that he intends to make a working visit to Jeddah, in mid-May to discuss means to benefit from the financing capabilities of the Islamic Development Bank.
The Iranian official pointed to the arrival of a Saudi diplomatic technical team in Tehran earlier this week, within the framework of the two countries’ agreement to reopen embassies and consulates within two months.
In an interview published by the state-run ISNA news agency on Tuesday, Enayati said: “Based on information received from the Saudi brothers, this delegation, after returning to Riyadh, will take measures to reopen the Saudi embassy in Tehran and the consulate in Mashhad.”
The state agency cited reports about the possibility of naming Enayati as ambassador to Riyadh. The official took part in the Saudi-Iranian rounds of talks in Iraq and China, which ended with an agreement to resume relations on March 10.
The Iranian diplomat noted that his country was seeking to reopen its embassy in Saudi Arabia before the Hajj season.
“We are trying to reopen the embassy in Riyadh and the consulate in Jeddah before the Hajj season,” he stated.
On the other hand, the IRGC-Fars news agency reported that Iranian Minister of Economy Ehsan Khandozi intends to conduct a working visit to Jeddah, in mid-May, “to discuss benefiting from the financing capabilities of the Islamic Development Bank.”
The minister said that the establishment of a joint Iranian-Saudi Chamber of Commerce was on the agenda, adding that the Iranian Trade Promotion Organization was working on a roadmap for bilateral cooperation, targeting an economic exchange worth one billion dollars.
