Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister said on Monday that the nuclear deal with Iran must be a starting point to resolve the region’s issues.
Noting the EU’s significant role in the negotiations to revive the deal in Vienna, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan told Al Arabiya that the Kingdom looks forward to the EU’s role regarding the region’s security and stability.
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Meanwhile, EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell told Al Arabiya that the EU will inform Saudi Arabia of the results of the negotiations in Vienna.
Borrell stressed that the security of the Gulf is important to the EU, adding that the EU will appoint an envoy to the Gulf soon.
The Vienna talks, which began in April 2021, aim to bring Iran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal and facilitate a US return to the agreement.
Washington withdrew from the deal in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump, reimposing sweeping sanctions on Tehran.
Gulf, European role
Saad bin Mohammed al-Arifi, head of the Saudi mission to the EU, said the Gulf-European meeting in Brussels will discuss several issues including national security, energy and digital economy as well as Gulf and European efforts to improve Yemen’s humanitarian situation.
Arifi told Al Arabiya that the Kingdom and all Gulf Cooperation Council countries look forward to seeing Iran end its attempts to attain nuclear weapons and stop its support to “terrorist” militias that destabilize the region’s security.
Mutual cooperation
Prince Faisal met with Borrell on Sunday on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany and discussed relations between Saudi Arabia and the EU as well as means to strengthen them and improve mutual cooperation and coordination.
They also discussed Iran’s nuclear program and the international negotiations aimed at reviving the nuclear deal and means to enhance mutual efforts toward ending the Iran-backed Houthi militia’s violations in Yemen and which obstruct a political solution to the conflict in the country.
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