Iranian delegation arrives in Saudi to prepare for embassy reopening

An Iranian technical delegation arrived in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday to prepare for the reopening of Tehran's embassy there, Iran's Foreign Ministry said, under a deal to re-establish ties.

Both countries' foreign ministers met in Beijing earlier this month for the first formal gathering of their top diplomats in more than seven years, after China brokered the agreement to restore relations between the top regional powers. "The Iranian delegation will take the necessary measures in Riyadh and Jeddah to set up the embassy and consulate general," Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanaani, said in a statement.

The detente between the Sunni kingdom and the revolutionary Shi’ite theocracy could help stabilise the Middle East, where the two sides have supported sectarian proxy forces that are either at daggers drawn or openly at war.