Political message carried...
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Now, following the Iranian foreign minister’s visit to Saudi Arabia, the visit of General Fayyad bin Hamed al-Ruwaili, the chief of the general staff of the Saudi armed forces, in Iran heralds a new chapter in the two countries’ relations and signals their determination to boost cooperation in various fields, including military and security.
This visit also carried an important political message that did not go unnoticed by analysts and leading media outlets in the region and beyond: a shift in the dynamics between Arab countries and Iran, on the one hand, and Israel, on the other. Over the past year, while these countries’ relations with the Israeli regime have been marked by challenges, their ties with Iran have grown closer, effectively limiting the Israeli regime’s room for maneuver against Iran.
A day after this high-level military meeting, Iranian First Vice President Mohammad-Reza Aref traveled to Saudi Arabia to attend the second emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League, which was convened at the initiative of the Islamic Republic of Iran and focuses on the cease-fire in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.
Meanwhile, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman talked on the phone, during which Pezeshkian extended an invitation to the Saudi leader to visit Iran. Speculation is rife in political circles that a formal written invitation from Iran to the Saudi crown prince will be handed over to senior Saudi officials by the Iranian first vice president.
It is likely that a visit by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Tehran would represent a new turning point in relations between the two countries, cementing existing ties and paving the way for greater cooperation that would ultimately benefit all countries in the region.