JEDDAH, 14 September — Iranian President Mohammed Khatami, here on his second visit to Saudi Arabia, was scheduled to hold talks today with Prince Abdullah, the regent, on US threats against Iraq and the implications for the Gulf region, Saudi Press Agency reported.
They are also to discuss Saudi-Iranian relations, which have been on the mend since a landmark 1999 visit by Khatami, only the second here by an Iranian head of state since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Both countries are opposed to US plans to strike Iraq, a position they made clear during a visit to Tehran in early August by Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal.
Khatami was greeted on arrival in Jeddah on Thursday by Interior Minister Prince Naif.
The Iranian leader visited Makkah to perform Umrah, SPA said. He also visited the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah.
Khatami was greeted by Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Khuzaim, deputy chief of the Presidency for the Two Holy Mosques Affairs, and a number of officials.
The Kingdom and Iran inked a security agreement in April last year during a visit to Tehran by Prince Naif, the first Saudi interior minister to travel there since the revolution.
