Larijani: Saudi Arabia Should Set Aside Its Delusions

The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament emphasized that "we are not seeking disputes with Saudi Arabia," describing Saudi Arabia's approach in Yemen as stemming from delusions and misunderstandings, advising the country to "set aside its delusions." According to ISNA news agency, Ali Larijani, who traveled to Baghdad to attend the Islamic Inter-Parliamentary Union conference, stated during a meeting with his Pakistani counterpart that Saudi Arabia must "set aside its delusions." The Iranian Speaker stressed that "we are not looking for disputes with Saudi Arabia. There are delusions that they must set aside. There is no justification for Saudi Arabia to buy weapons from the U.S. and drop them on the people of Yemen, although it seems that Saudi Arabia is facing misunderstandings in this regard." According to the report, Ayaz Sadiq, the Speaker of the Pakistani Parliament, also said that Pakistan can play a "brotherly role between the two brothers." Mr. Larijani, in an interview with IRNA news agency, criticized Saudi Arabia's policies in the region, stating that "the doors of diplomacy are still open to Saudi Arabia, and we hope Riyadh will return from the wrong path it has chosen sooner rather than later." The Iranian Speaker also criticized the execution of Sheikh Nimr, a Shia cleric, in Saudi Arabia during the opening session of the Islamic Inter-Parliamentary Union conference, stating that "no one should be executed for expressing an opinion." He accused Saudi Arabia, without naming it, of asking major global powers to delay Iran's nuclear negotiations with the 5+1 group to "lower oil prices." According to reports from several Arabic-language media outlets, including the "Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed" news agency, Marzouq Al-Ghanem, the Speaker of the Kuwaiti Parliament, objected to Mr. Larijani's remarks, calling them interference in Saudi Arabia's internal affairs. Iran and Saudi Arabia have had severe disagreements over conflicts in Syria and Yemen for years, and about three weeks ago, following attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran in protest against Sheikh Nimr's execution, Riyadh cut its diplomatic ties with Tehran. Meanwhile, Reuters reported that during a closed session at the Davos conference, a verbal clash occurred between Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, and Turki Al-Faisal, a senior Saudi official. Iranian officials, including Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, have repeatedly accused Saudi Arabia of harming Muslim countries in the region with a "conspiracy to lower oil prices" and having a "destructive and non-constructive role" in negotiations regarding Iran's nuclear program.