Iran-Saudi ties: China-brokered ‘win-win’ deal could bring Yemen war to a close, analysts say
- Tehran and Riyadh have agreed to restore diplomatic relations following the Beijing-led talks that experts dubbed as ‘a major development in the Middle Eastern diplomacy’
- Analysts say the easing of tensions between the rivals could also prompt Saudi and Iran to end hostilities in Yemen by agreeing to a ‘face-saving’ resolution
Although details of the deal reached during five days of talks in Beijing have not been made public, many analysts believe they include an understanding on bringing the eight-year war in Yemen to a negotiated close.
A Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened militarily in Yemen in 2015 to support the internationally recognised government against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Alongside an Iraqi militia, the Houthis have unleashed several drone and missile attacks on the kingdom and its energy installations.
The hostilities have largely stopped following a ceasefire implemented in 2022, but the long-running war has killed thousands and left Yemen on the brink of famine. The truce pact, which expired last October, is up for renewal.
Analysts described the warming of ties between the two Middle Eastern rivals as “a major development in regional diplomacy”.
For Iran, it represents a “successful effort of trying to push back against regional isolation without major changes to its policies”, which adversaries like Saudi Arabia had previously been demanding, Hussein Ibish, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, said.