By SULTAN AL-TAMIMI | ARAB NEWS

JEDDAH: The Kingdom’s bilateral dialogue with Iran will continue, Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said at a joint press conference with his British counterpart William Hague in Jeddah on Tuesday.

“I met with Iran’s former Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki in Tehran and the next meeting was supposed to take place in Riyadh. However, they placed some conditions that we did not agree with,” said Prince Saud. “Recently, the current Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi called me and requested a meeting on the condition that it takes place in Kuwait. I asked him why he would choose Kuwait in the context of a bilateral dialogue when we are supposed to meet in Saudi Arabia.”

Prince Saud also said the Kingdom and the UK were looking forward to a positive response by the parties involved in the current political struggle in Yemen. He referred to the GCC initiative to restore normalcy in Yemen and prevent it from falling into civil war.

Prince Saud also revealed that Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, recovering from an assassination attempt in Riyadh, is in “generally good health.” read more

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al Faisal, right, holds talks with British Foreign Minister William Hague in Jeddah on Tuesday. (SPA