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Saudi Arabia Urges Iran To Change 'Behavior'


Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir.
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir has urged Iran to change its "behavior" in order to normalize ties between the regional rivals.

Jubeir, speaking in Riyadh on March 27, said the oil-rich kingdom "wants to have peaceful relations" with Tehran and that it had tried to forge closer ties with Iran for more than three decades but "in exchange we received nothing.”

Riyadh broke all diplomatic ties with Tehran in January after crowds angry about Saudi's execution of a prominent Shi'ite cleric attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran and a consulate in the second city Mashhad.

Riyadh accuses Iran of supporting Shi'ite Huthi rebels in Yemen.

The Saudis also support rebels in Syria's five-year-old war while Tehran openly backs the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

On March 26, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said Riyadh plays an important role in the Muslim world and that "if there is any problem between two countries, it should be resolved through talks."

Based on reporting by AP and AFP

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