As a Second Chance to Riyadh, Iran Will Hold Talks with Saudis in Future

Speaking in a meeting with a Lebanese media delegation in Tehran, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, the international advisor to Iranian Parliament Speaker, referred to a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the former director general of the Saudi Intelligence Agency Bandar bin Sultan in Moscow, where the Saudi official talked about his country’s plan to use armed forces to overthrow the political system in Syria.

“During the meeting, Putin asked Bandar bin Sultan if he was aware that once Damascus falls, the armed forces would come after you in Riyadh, to which the Saudi official said, ‘yes we are, but immediately after the overthrow of Assad, we will bomb and kill all armed forces in Syria’.”

“We have many documents that prove the terrorist attack near our embassy in Beirut had been coordinated by Bandar bin Sultan, and the target of the attack was the Iranian ambassador Ghazanfar Roknabadi,” he said.

Amir Abdollahian went on to add, “What I mean by talking about these events is that we have been in talks with Saudi Arabia and will continue to do so because we are neighbours and situated in the same region.”

“Saudi Arabia has many capacities that could be utilized in service of the Islamic world and the region, but unfortunately, their approach is not constructive,” Mehr quoted him as saying.

“In turn, we have tried to show self-restraint and give them another chance because their domestic issues have impaired their ability to make right decisions.”

No Country, Even Iran, Has the Right to Interfere in Lebanese Elections

Elsewhere in his remarks, he stressed that Lebanese leaders are highly competent to make decisions for their own country, and no foreign country, be it Saudi Arabia, France, the US or even Iran, has the right to interfere in their domestic affairs.

“Iran has made a lot of efforts for the completion of a political process in Lebanon,” he said.

Amir Abdollahian went on to criticize Saud Al Faisal and Adel Al-Jubeir, Saudi Arabia’s former and current foreign ministers, for their unconstructive approaches toward the political process in Lebanon, and stressed that the president of Lebanon should be selected from the country’s Christian party.

“Once prominent Christian figures in Lebanon decide on one person who is approved by other political parties, the Islamic Republic of Iran will support that decision,” he said.