Riyadh denies statements on Iran attributed to new Foreign Minister

Saudi Foreign Ministry on Saturday denied statements attributed to Adel al-Jubeir, the kingdom's newly-appointed foreign minister, regarding Saudi relations with Iran.

Al-Jubeir "has not made any statements of any kind to any media outlet since his appointment as foreign minister and there is no truth to what had been attributed to him," Saudi's official SPA news agency quoted ministry spokesman Osama Naqli as saying.

Iranian news outlets had reported that al-Jubeir stressed the importance of the Iran's "role" in the Middle East and that there was no solution but to sit down and open channels of negotiations to resolve conflicts.

"I am ready to go to Iran and ready to discuss various matters, including Yemen," al-Jubeir was quoted by Iranian media outlets as saying following his appointment as the kingdom's new chief diplomat.

On April 29, al-Jubeir was appointed as Saudi Arabia's foreign minister to succeed Prince Saud al-Faisal, who was relived from his duty at his own behest for health reasons.