Riyadh (TDI): In a significant diplomatic development, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah on Tuesday. It was Araqchi’s first trip to the Kingdom since the recent Iran-Israel conflict ended last month.
According to Saudi state media, the talks covered bilateral relations and recent shifts in the region’s security landscape. Iranian officials described the conversations as “constructive,” with Araqchi also holding separate meetings with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman.
Araqchi’s stop in Saudi Arabia came as part of his return journey from Brazil, where he had attended a regional peace forum. Tehran’s foreign ministry had said the visit would focus on restoring calm and security across the Middle East.
The visit comes just weeks after a devastating 12-day military confrontation between Iran and Israel that began on June 13. The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) project recorded more than 500 Israeli air raids on Iranian targets during the escalation. A separate tally by Al Jazeera’s Sanad fact-checking unit placed the number of Israeli and US strikes at 145.
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Iran’s response included around 120 missile and drone attacks on Israeli military and civilian infrastructure. Noteworthy strikes reportedly hit the Soroka Medical Center, the Israeli intelligence school, the Haifa Interior Ministry, and several energy facilities.
The United States entered the fray on June 22, launching targeted strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites in Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan using bunker-buster munitions. The intervention raised fears of wider regional escalation.
A ceasefire was brokered by Washington two days later, on June 24, shortly after Iranian missiles struck a major US airbase in Qatar. Since then, both sides have maintained a cautious pause in hostilities, though leaders in Tehran and Tel Aviv have warned of potential retaliation if provoked again.
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Iranian officials say nearly nine million people were displaced during the conflict, with mass movement toward the country’s northern provinces.
As diplomatic efforts resume, Araqchi’s trip to Saudi Arabia is being viewed as a test of whether regional rivals can help steer the Middle East away from another round of warfare.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
