NEW YORK, July 16. /TASS/. Iran’s acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani has hailed Moscow and Beijing’s constructive role in the efforts toward ensuring political stability in the Middle East.
"We believe that Russia and China are making serious efforts in order to consolidate the mutual political confidence in the region, and they are also doing their best to further ensure economic relations and connections and cooperation in our region [of the Middle East]," he said in an interview with the Newsweek weekly.
"The root causes of all tensions and crisis in our region ties back to the unilateralism that has been applied by the United States of America," he said. "In recent decades, the US through its illegal presence in Iraq and Afghanistan has not only committed numerous atrocities and killings and caused a lot of damages, but at the same time this country has brought about the expansion of insecurity, terrorism and narcotics."
The top Iranian diplomat noted China’s role as a mediator in the talks on the resumption of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia. "China played a significant role in this country in order to revive the connections between Iran and Saudi Arabia as two key and neighboring countries," he stressed.
Relations between Riyadh and Tehran became strained in March 2015 after a Saudi-led coalition 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 of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent Shia cleric, in Riyadh.
On March 10, Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to normalize bilateral relations and open embassies within two months. Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran Ali Shamkhani and Minister of State, National Security Advisor of Saudi Arabia Musaad bin Mohammed Al Aiban held talks in Beijing for several days, after which a trilateral statement was adopted.