Saudi Gazette report

BEIJING — Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian met in China on Thursday for the first time.

Pictures from the meeting's venue showed the two ministers walking side by side and exchanging talks and laughs before going into an official talks session. Chinese foreign minister welcomed the two ministers ahead of their session.

Abdollahian expressed to the Saudi minister the inconvenience of making the long trip from Tehran to Beijing. Prince Faisal responded by saying that the trip from Tehran to Riyadh won’t take more than two hours.

They discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations in many fields and implement the agreement signed in Beijing, including the reopening of embassies within the agreed period. They reviewed all possible means to achieve security and prosperity for the two countries and peoples.

The two sides expressed their aspiration to intensify the consultative meetings and discuss ways of cooperation to achieve more positive results from their relations to serve their common interests. The two ministers praised China for hosting the meeting.

The meeting was attended by the Kingdom’s Ambassador in Beijing Abdulrahman Alharbi, Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Ambassador Dr. Saud Al-Sati, and the Director General of Prince Faisal's Office Abdulrahman Al-Dawood.