TEHRAN – The foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia held a brief meeting in Islamabad on Sunday on the sidelines of a regional summit on Afghanistan, the spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry said. 

Speaking during a presser on Monday, Saeed Khatibzadeh said, “The foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia had a brief meeting on the sidelines of the Organization of Islamic Conference foreign ministers' meeting in Islamabad, Pakistan.”

But the spokesman at the same time underlined that no new developments have taken place in negotiations between Tehran and Riyadh. 

Commenting on the negotiations, the spokesman said, “We did not have a new development in this regard. We are still waiting for Riyadh's answer. The progress of the negotiations will depend on the seriousness of the other side. To the extent that they show seriousness, we are ready to make progress in the talks as well as to reach an understanding on the region and the bilateral talks.”

He added, “We call on Riyadh for political and diplomatic solutions and non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries. Comprehensive regional arrangements go through mutual respect and understanding of the realities of these countries.”

In response to a question posed by Tehran Times correspondent, Khatibzadeh said the fifth round of the Iran-Saudi talks has not been held yet.