Saudi Arabia: We Have Tried for Three Decades to Establish Peaceful Relations with Iran

The Saudi Foreign Minister says his country seeks peaceful relations with Iran but that Tehran must change its "behavior" towards Riyadh to return to normal relations. These remarks came after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani expressed hope that a "correct path" would soon be found to resolve issues between Tehran and Riyadh at the end of his recent trip to Pakistan. According to AFP, Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi Foreign Minister, stated on April 8 during a joint press conference with his South African counterpart that his country "wants peaceful relations with Iran." Al-Jubeir added that Saudi Arabia has made efforts to get closer to Tehran for over three decades but has received "nothing in response." The Saudi Foreign Minister claimed that instead of friendship, Iran has interfered in his country's internal affairs and attacked its diplomatic missions. Iran denies interfering in Saudi internal issues. Meanwhile, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic has expressed support for some prominent Shia clerics in Saudi Arabia. Following the execution of Sheikh Nimr, one of these clerics, Ayatollah Khamenei threatened Saudi Arabia that the "hand of divine vengeance" would seize the officials of that country. While the execution of Sheikh Nimr faced critical reactions, a group of individuals in Iran attacked Saudi diplomatic missions and set fire to its embassy in Tehran. The attack on Saudi diplomatic missions had widespread repercussions, and some analysts said its consequences were beyond what the attackers had thought, helping Riyadh reduce the criticism against itself. At the same time, Saudi Arabia and some of its allies severed their relations with Iran. Hassan Rouhani and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani condemned the attack on Saudi diplomatic missions and criticized it. Meanwhile, a group of conservative members of the Iranian parliament also criticized the reactions of Rouhani and Rafsanjani. This is not the first time relations between the two countries have been severed, and their relations have repeatedly been accompanied by severe tensions. In addition to the internal issues of the two countries, Iran and Saudi Arabia have significant disagreements over their approaches to regional crises, from Syria to Yemen, and support completely different poles.