Iran and Saudi Arabia can work together to eliminate the scourge of terrorism if the kingdom demonstrates the will to help make the region more secure, a top security official says.
“If they [the Saudis] show the necessary determination, it would be possible to leave the past behind and take joint action to help safeguard the interests and security of all regional countries,” Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said in remarks published in the latest issue of Tehran Foreign Policy Studies quarterly magazine, Mehr News Agency reported.
Tensions between the two regional powers have surged in recent years, with Saudi Arabia and Iran supporting opposite sides in the war in Syria and rival political parties in Iraq and Lebanon. They have also adopted different approaches to the conflict in Yemen.
Shamkhani said terrorism is a “manufactured” phenomenon in the region and countries such as the United States played a role in promoting it in order to change the status quo and advance their own interests.
“In fact, the US occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq over the past two decades and creation of turmoil in Syria attracted the youth to terrorist groups. The wrong policy of weakening legitimate governments in the region pursued by America caused terrorists from all over the world to head for Syria and Iraq, and form dozens of violent and extremist groups,” he said.
Tehran does not want to see the “overthrow of the Saudi government” because it will only lead to more chaos and extremism in the region, says a top security official
The official lamented that certain regional countries such as Saudi Arabia have been providing support to fanatic movements with the aim of expanding their own influence, saying that such a policy will eventually backfire.
Regional Cooperation
Shamkhani stated that the Islamic Republic, which is on the frontline of the war on terrorism, welcomes the participation of all countries in the fight against the spread of radicalism.
“There is no doubt that Iran’s regional policies are crucial to protecting its national security and long-term interests of regional nations,” he said, adding that the country’s national security policy has been devised by considering the importance of ensuring the security of all states in the region.
“If a country like Saudi Arabia, which feels that Iran’s fight against terrorism in the region is in conflict with its interests, were to look at the bigger picture, it will realize that the battle waged by Iran and the resistance front against terrorists also benefits them. It is true that the Saudis have had a role in promoting the extremist mentality, but they themselves fear that this self-styled phenomenon will one day boomerang,” he added.
Iran often refers to regional countries and forces opposed to Israel and the United States as a “resistance front”.
Shamkhani also said Tehran does not want to see the “overthrow of the Saudi government” because it will only lead to more chaos and extremism in the region.
Riyadh severed diplomatic relations after Iranian protesters stormed the Saudi Embassy in Tehran following the execution of a prominent Shia cleric, Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, in Saudi Arabia in January 2016.
Saudi authorities welcomed US President Donald Trump’s decision in May to withdraw the United States from an international nuclear agreement with Iran and to reimpose economic sanctions on Tehran.
