This morning, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said that the kingdom is optimistic that it would have "excellent relations" with the new U.S. administration of President Joe Biden and it would continue to talk with Washington regarding the Iran nuclear deal.
"I am optimistic. Saudi Arabia has built solid, historical relations with US and worked with different administrations. We will continue to do that as well with President Biden," Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said in an interview with Arabiya TV.
Earlier on his election campaign, Biden pledged to reassess ties with Saudi Arabia, a state he described as a "pariah" in 2019. Biden has said he will take a firmer stand on Saudi’s human rights record and the devastating Yemen war.
Prince Faisal said that Riyadh will continue to consult with Washington the Iran nuclear deal.
It is worthy to note that the United States pulled out in 2018 of the 2015 deal between major powers and Iran, under which Iran restrained its nuclear program in return for relief from economic sanctions.
"I believe basically the consultations will be around reaching a solid and strong agreement that takes into account Iran's failure to comply. ..with strong monitoring factors to ensure the implementation of the agreement," Prince Faisal said.
Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies including the United Arab Emirates, concerned about Iran’s ballistic missiles and regional network of proxies, supported Trump’s maximum pressure campaign on Tehran and welcomed his decision to quit the nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions on Iran.
They have said that this time around they should be included in any potential negotiations between the Biden administration and Iran on a new nuclear deal, to ensure it addresses Iran’s missile capabilities and “malign activity”.
Biden stressed that if Tehran resumed strict compliance with the agreement Washington would too.
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