Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani has denied reports that Tehran intends to attack Saudi Arabia.
“The falsification of such a biased report by some Western and Zionist circles aims to create a negative atmosphere for the Islamic Republic of Iran and undermine ongoing positive processes with countries in the region,” Kanaani said said on November 2, in response to a question about a Wall Street Journal report on the possible attack on Saudi Arabia.
He further said that Iran “continues the good-neighborhood policy based on mutual respect and within the framework of international principles and regulations, and believes that enhancing stability and security in the region depends on constructive interaction with neighbors, and will continue to do so in earnest”.
The Wall Street Journal wrote on November 1 that Saudi Arabia had shared information with the United States about Iran’s plans to attack the kingdom. After that, Saudi Arabia and the US put their forces in the Middle East on high alert.
On the same day, a US National Security Council (NSC) representative expressed Washington’s concern about threats against Saudi Arabia from Iran.
“We are concerned about the threat landscape and remain in constant contact with the Saudis through military and intelligence channels,” the spokesman said Nov. 1 Reuters.
Iranian authorities have previously publicly accused Saudi Arabia, along with the US and Israel, of instigating the ongoing unrest in Iran, sparked in mid-September following the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody. They publicly warned Saudi Arabia against curbing coverage of the protests in Iran by Persian-language satellite news channels, including Iran International, a Saudi-backed satellite TV channel. Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have repeatedly accused “enemies” of instigating the unrest, which has seen at least 300 protesters killed by security forces.
On October 29, the Supreme Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Maj Gen Hossein Salami threatened Saudi Arabia in retaliation for “Riyadh’s attempt to destabilize Iran,” saying that “the conspiracy that is going on in our country these days and nights is the product of the unification of the US, Britain, Saudi Arabia and the policy of the Zionist regime. “
in the another warning On October 20, Salami said, “I’ll tell Al Saud [ruling family of Saudi Arabia] sneaking back into their glass palaces is our warning,” adding that “they are leaning on Israel, which is on the brink of collapse.”
Diplomatic relations between the two countries were severed in 2016 after protesters stormed Saudi Arabian diplomatic missions in Iran in retaliation for Saudi Arabia’s execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a religious leader. Iran supports the Houthi rebels in Yemen’s civil war, who have been fighting the Saudi-led coalition for more than seven years.
Saudi Arabia blamed Iran for a missile and drone attack on its oil facilities in 2019, an accusation Tehran denies. The two countries’ leading Muslim powers have also been locked in rivalry for decades, supporting allies fighting proxy wars across the region.
Last year finally Iran and Saudi Arabia I Agree Baghdad-brokered peace talks. While both sides are reporting progress in the talks, no significant breakthrough has yet been reported. According to Iranian Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian, the two countries reached some agreements over the five rounds of talks, including on reopening embassies.
