Saudi Arabia's crown prince called Iranian President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday to congratulate him on winning the election, Saudi state media reported.
Mohammed bin Salman and Masoud Pezeshkian “praised the development of relations between the two countries at various levels, stressing the importance of further enhancing cooperation in various fields,” the official said. Saudi Press Agency reported.
The Saudi king also sent a congratulatory message to Pezeshkian following his election in early July.
King Salman bin Abdulaziz had expressed his hope for the “continuous development of relations linking our two countries and our two brotherly peoples.” SPA he said at the time.
After a seven-year rift, Saudi Arabia and Iran have resumed relations thanks to a surprise deal brokered by China and announced in March last year.
Since then, there have been increasing signs of rapprochement between the two regional powers, even though each supports different sides in several conflicts, most notably in Syria and Yemen.
The two exchanged ambassadorial and foreign ministerial visits, before the late Ebrahim Raisi made the first visit by an Iranian president to the kingdom in 20 years to attend a joint Arab-Islamic summit to discuss the Gaza conflict last November.
Pezeshkian is a heart surgeon whose only previous government experience was as health minister about two decades ago. The death of ultra-conservative President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash made it necessary to call elections, which were not scheduled until 2025.
Pezeshkian is considered a “reformist” in Iran, and was the only candidate from that camp allowed to run in the election, in which all contenders were approved by Iran’s Guardian Council.
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has the final say on all major political issues in the country.
