"Exploring a year of Iran-Saudi Relations Post-Beijing Agreement"

An article by Mehdi Beigi Radio Farda - ????? ????

It has been a year since the landmark agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia aimed at normalizing relations. While numerous regional countries expressed optimism and highlighted the potential achievements of this accord, a pivotal question persists: Has the agreement effectively addressed the long-standing disputes between these two nations and propelled their bilateral relations forward?

On March 9, 2023 Ali Shamkhani, then Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, officially announced the agreement in Beijing, marking a commitment to the resumption of bilateral relations between Tehran and Riyadh. Approximately a month later, a meeting between Iran's Foreign Minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, and his Saudi counterpart, Faisal bin Farhan, yielded a comprehensive roadmap for normalizing relations.

The key points of the roadmap included:

-Reopening embassies in Tehran and Riyadh, along with consulates in Mashhad and Jeddah.

-Activation of agreements covering security and general cooperation, spanning areas such as trade and technology.

-Coordination to explore avenues for expanding bilateral cooperation including: encompassing the resumption of flights, official and private sector visits, and streamlining visa issuance for citizens, including for Hajj and Umrah.

After these discussions, representatives from both countries held numerous phone calls and meetings. The first concrete step occurred in May 2023 when embassies and consulates were reopened, marking a positive development in Iran-Saudi relations.

Five months later, President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran traveled to Riyadh, where he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia. However, beyond these diplomatic visits, it remains uncertain whether the two countries have implemented practical and effective measures to normalize relations.

Several key issues pose significant obstacles to the normalization process.

Saudi Arabia-Israel relations

One notable concern is Saudi Arabia's relationship with Israel, particularly in the aftermath of the extremist group Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7th and the commencement of the Gaza war.

Habib Hosseinifard, an international affairs analyst in Germany, speaks about this relationship to Radio Farda:

"Since the October 7th attack by Hamas, Saudi Arabia has not heeded the Islamic Republic's call to abandon the idea of severing ties with Israel completely. Saudi Arabia insists that as long as Israel recognizes the Palestinian state, it has no problem reviving its relationship with Israel. This is while the Islamic Republic seeks the destruction of Israel."

Yemen War

Adding to the complexities is the ongoing internal conflict in Yemen, where Saudi Arabia has been engaged in hostilities with the Shiite Houthi militias since 2014. While there were initial hopes for peace in Yemen following the agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia, recent developments have raised concerns. Since the beginning of the Gaza war, Iran has intensified its support for the Houthis, particularly in their attacks on Israeli ships in the Red Sea. In contrast, Saudi Arabia has maintained its stance regarding the Houthis.

Arash Gas Field

Another disagreement between Tehran and Riyadh revolves around the Arash gas field in the northern Persian Gulf. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait claim that this field is located in a neutral area in the south of Kuwait. However, Iran claims ownership of the northern part of this field.

The Three Islands

In addition, in recent years, Saudi Arabia has supported the United Arab Emirates in claiming ownership of the three islands of Tunb Kuchak, Tunb Bozorg, and Abu Musa. Despite the agreement with Tehran, Saudi Arabia has maintained its position on this matter.

Visa and Umrah

However, in terms of practical steps for normalization, in November 2023, Iran unilaterally canceled the need for visas for Saudi Arabia citizens. In December , the first group of Iranian pilgrims was supposed to travel to Mecca for Umrah after seven years, but the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance of Iran suddenly announced the cancellation of these trips, citing technical issues. Later, Jafar Yazarloo, the spokesperson for the country's aviation organization, stated that there was no technical issue, and the problem was the lack of issuance of flight permits by Saudi Arabia. The issue remained unresolved, and a month and a half later, the Hajj and Umrah Organization announced the refunding of deposits to those who had registered for the pilgrimage.

Economical relations

Improving economic and trade relations was another issue raised in the Beijing agreement. Omid Shokri, a research fellow at George Mason University and an energy strategist in Washington, gives his insight regarding Iran and Suadi Arabia economical relations a year after Beijing deal to Radio Farda:

"The main problem for Saudi Arabia and other foreign companies is the continuation of sanctions and Iran's non-membership in the?Financial Action Task Force( FATF). All these factors have combined to prevent Iran from utilizing the financial potential of Saudi companies, especially in the oil and gas, petrochemical, and even renewable energy sectors."

Mr. Shokri adds that Iran and Saudi Arabia have never been serious trade partners in the past four decades. The highest volume of trade between the two countries was 22 years ago, reaching a total of $950 million in exports and imports. Since then, this figure has never reached higher for example to one billion dollars.

Regarding the trade relations between the two countries after the Beijing deal, there have not been any new statistics published yet. However, according to Ferial Mostofi, a member of the representatives' committee at the Iran Chamber of Commerce, it can be concluded that these relations have not yet warmed up. Mostofi stated in an interview with Eco Iran:

"It's still too early to say that economic relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia have begun. Both sides are interested in establishing these relations, but it takes some time."

Mining is one industry where Iran and Saudi Arabia expressed hope for cooperation. Mohsen Fathollahi, the deputy director of the Sharif Mining and Industrial Institute,in an interview with Eco Iran website confirmed that Iran has not succeeded in utilizing the Beijing agreement to expand cooperation with Saudi Arabia in the industry and mining sector.

However, considering fundamental differences in political and regional issues, how will is outlook for deepening relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia ?

Habib Hosseinifard an Iranian international affairs analyst says:

"As long as the Islamic Republic collaborates with its proxy forces in the region and pursues a tension-inducing policy, as long as its nuclear policy remains a significant challenge for the region and the international community, and as long as it does not revive its relations with other countries, especially with the United States, it does not seem that its relationship with Saudi Arabia will deepen and the mistrust that existed between the two countries will not be eliminated despite the Beijing agreement."

To sum up, the actions taken by Iran and Saudi Arabia for normalization in the past year have not yielded significant results due to fundamental differences, neither politically nor economically. According to some experts, the shallow and insufficient actions of both parties in resuming ties suggests that the Beijing deal still remains as delicate as it was a year ago.