TEHRAN, March 10. /TASS/. The normalization of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia will help promote peace and security in the Persian Gulf region, Ali Shamkhani, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said on Friday.

"The talks between the two countries were transparent, comprehensive, productive and trust-based. Bridging the gaps in relations between Tehran and Riyadh will inevitably lead to the enhancement of regional stability and security, and to the expansion of cooperation between the countries in the Gulf region and in the entire Islamic world, which is necessary for overcoming the current challenges," the Tasnim News Agency quoted him as saying.

Tasnim reported earlier on Friday that Iran and Saudi Arabia had agreed to normalize bilateral relations and planned to open embassies within two months. Shamkhani and his Saudi counterparts had held talks in Beijing for several days, after which a trilateral statement was adopted. The statement says that the countries are committed to the principles of sovereignty and non-interference in each other’s domestic affairs and plan to resume cooperation in the areas of trade, economy, culture, science and technology.

Relations between Riyadh and Tehran became strained in March 2015 after a Saudi-led coalition had launched a military operation in Yemen against the Ansar Allah (Houthi) movement. Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic relations with Iran in January 2016 after its embassy in Tehran and a consulate in Mashhad were attacked by crowds protesting against the execution in Riyadh of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent Shia cleric.