Saudi Arabia's team arrives in Iran to discuss embassy reopening

A technical delegation from Saudi Arabia arrived in Iran on Saturday evening to assess the situation and discuss the procedures for the reopening of the Saudi embassy and consulate general in the country, Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) reported.

Citing the Saudi Press Agency, ISNA said the trip comes following the agreements reached between the two countries in Beijing on the normalization of bilateral ties.

It added during the trip, the Saudi delegation will visit Tehran to discuss the mechanism for reopening the country's embassy here, and evaluate the situation for the reopening of the Saudi consulate general in the northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad.

Following their arrival, it said, the team members met with Mehdi Honardoost, director general of ceremonies at the Iranian Foreign Ministry, in Tehran and thanked the ministry's officials for their warm welcome and for facilitating the delegation's visit.

China, Saudi Arabia, and Iran announced on March 10 that the latter two had reached a deal that includes the agreement to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and missions within two months.

In a meeting in Beijing on Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud signed a joint statement, announcing the resumption of diplomatic relations with immediate effect.

Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran in 2016 in response to the attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran after the kingdom executed a Shiite cleric.