Saudi Arabia Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman is in Tehran, he met Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday. During their interaction, he delivered a letter from his father, King Salman.

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It is after almost a two decades that Khamenei has received a Saudi official, the last visit was since in 2006, that is when the then-Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal visited the country.

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Khamenei also expressed support and shared intentions for closer ties between the two countries.

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“We believe that relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Saudi Arabia will be beneficial for both countries, and the two countries can complement each other,” Khamenei was quoted in Iran’s state news agency IRNA .

He added, “It is much better for brothers in the region to cooperate and help each other than to rely on others."

“Bilateral relations between the two countries were reviewed and issues and topics of common interest were discussed," Saudi state news agency SPA published.

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Prince Khalid also met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali Akbar Ahmadian, and chief of staff of the armed forces Mohammad Bagheri.

“Iran and Saudi Arabia can resolve many of the region’s problems by relying on their joint capacities and without the need for foreign intervention,” Pezeshkian said during his meeting with the Saudi defense chief, according to IRNA.

"Ties between the Saudi and Iranian armed forces have been improving since the Beijing agreement," Mohammad Bagheri said after meeting Prince Khalid, according to IRNA

It was in March 2023, that Saudi Arabia and Iran announced they had reached an agreement, brokered by China. It was an agreement to reestablish diplomatic relations. This was after having not formal ties for seven years.

In 2016, Saudi Arabia had severed ties with Iran. The decision was taken after attacks by pro-regime protesters on its consulate in Mashhad and embassy in Tehran.