Middle East officials and sources said that Saudi and Iranian officials intend to hold more direct talks this month, but a date has not yet been set, with the aim of easing tensions between the two countries, and two delegations representing Riyadh and Tehran had met in Baghdad early this month.
Reuters quoted a Middle East official and two regional sources as saying that more talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran may take place before the end of this month, but the timing depends on the extent of progress recorded in the Vienna talks related to the Iranian nuclear file.
The former official said, "The April meeting was very constructive, during which many issues were discussed, mainly the Yemen crisis and the Iranian nuclear agreement."
A foreign diplomat in Riyadh stated that a second meeting is expected between the Saudi and Iranian sides at the end of April or early May.
Informed sources said that the talks, which began after the visit of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi to Riyadh, are led by Saudi intelligence chief Khaled bin Ali Humaidan, and Saeed Arafani, deputy secretary of the Supreme Council for Iranian National Security.
Three of the sources, including the diplomat, explained that the main focus of the Saudi-Iranian talks was on Yemen, where a Saudi-led military coalition is fighting the Houthi group allied with Iran, which has escalated its attacks by drones and missiles on Saudi territory in the recent period.
Mutual demands
The regional official said that the Iranian side promised to use Tehran's influence to stop the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, and in return requested that Riyadh support the nuclear talks in Vienna between Iran and world powers regarding the Iran nuclear deal concluded in 2015.
Neither Riyadh nor Tehran has publicly confirmed or denied holding a first meeting in Iraq earlier this month, although the Iranian ambassador to Baghdad, Iraj Masjedi, welcomed Iraq's mediation to repair relations with the Gulf states.
Saudi Arabia and Iran severed their diplomatic relations in 2016, and in 2019 Riyadh held Tehran responsible for an attack claimed by the Houthis on oil facilities in the Kingdom, which Iran denied.