Deputy FM Blames Saud al-Faisal’s Harsh Remarks for Zarif’s Cancelled Trip to Riyadh

(FNA)- The harsh comments made by Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal against Tehran's ally, Syria, dissuaded his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif from visiting Riyadh, Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian said.

"The meeting between the Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers in New York (on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in September) was positive and after the visit which bore constructive results for the regional states, we received a written invitation from the Saudi foreign minister for Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to visit Riyadh to discuss the regional and international issues, and then a date for his visit was specified," Amir Abdollahian said in an interview with Iran-based Arabic-language al-Alam news channel on Saturday.

"Unfortunately, the Saudi foreign minister's harsh and unexpected remarks on Syria caused the visit to be cancelled," he added.

Stressing that the Saudi foreign minister still insists on the necessity for holding a meeting with Zarif, Amir Abdollahian said Zarif will go on such visit once conditions are ripe.

Both Tehran and Riyadh had previously boosted efforts to remove their differences over regional developments, and meantime, improve their ties, in various political, economic, and tourism fields.

But the Saudi foreign minister's hostile remarks about Iran and its support for the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance front as well as Bashar al-Assad's government, a main ally of Tehran, have raised Iran's doubts about widening ties with Riyadh.

More importantly, Saudi Arabia has played a major role in the free fall of the international crude oil prices, and Tehran is angry at Riyadh's adamant resistance against cooperation with other OPEC members to restore crude prices back to normal.