Saudi crown prince keen to develop Iran ties

Saudi Arabia’s king and crown prince congratulated Masoud Pezeshkian on his election as Iran’s president, state news agency SPA reported on Saturday.

“I affirm my keenness on developing and deepening the relations between our countries and people and serve our mutual interests,” SPA quoted Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as saying.

In March 2023, Iran and Saudi Arabia signed a landmark China-brokered deal to re-establish relations after years of regional rivalry.

Since then, officials from both sides continued talks to bolster ties.

Masoud Pezeshkian won Friday’s run-off presidential vote against former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili. He will replace President Ebrahim Raisi, who was killed in a helicopter crash in May.

Pezeshkian, a 69-year-old cardiac surgeon, has pledged to promote a pragmatic foreign policy, ease tensions over now-stalled negotiations with major powers to revive a 2015 nuclear pact and improve prospects for social liberalisation and political pluralism.