In this Aug 29, 2022 file photo, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi speaks at a press conference in Tehran, Iran. (IRANIAN PRESIDENTIAL WEBSITE / HANDOUT VIA XINHUA)

TEHRAN - Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has accepted an invitation from King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia for a visit to Saudi capital of Riyadh, Iran's first Vice-President Mohammad Mokhber confirmed Monday.

Mokhber made the remarks when asked to respond to the Saudi King's invitation to Raisi of visiting Riyadh, semi-official Mehr news agency reported.

Commenting on Iran's ties with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states in the region, Iran's first Vice-President Mohammad Mokhber said the improvement of relations with regional countries has been among the major strategies pursued by the Raisi administration since the president took office

The move followed the China-brokered talks in Beijing in early March, during which Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and missions within two months.

On March 19, Mohammad Jamshidi, the Iranian president's deputy chief of staff for political affairs, tweeted that the Saudi king had written the Iranian president an invitation letter to visit Riyadh.

Commenting on Iran's ties with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states in the region, Mokhber said the improvement of relations with regional countries has been among the major strategies pursued by the Raisi administration since the president took office.

Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran in early 2016 in response to the attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran after the kingdom executed a Shi'ite cleric.

In this Nov 22, 2020 file photo, Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud delivers his closing remarks at the G20 summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (G20 SAUDI ARABIA / HANDOUT VIA XINHUA)

Iran, Saudi Arabia to open joint chamber of commerce

Iran and Saudi Arabia will open a joint chamber of commerce soon, an Iranian business leader revealed on Monday.

Keyvan Kashefi, a member of the presiding board of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), said during a meeting that ICCIMA is following up on the launch of the joint chamber of commerce.

Iran plans to begin the exchange of business delegations with Saudi Arabia immediately after the reopening of the embassies in the two countries and the reinstatement of their ambassadors, he added.

Kashefi said the normalization of ties between Tehran and Riyadh has been Iran's main political and economic issue over the past 30 days. He added that Iran's private sector welcomed the "constructive and positive" interaction with Saudi Arabia and had started to plan for more economic cooperation.

The Iranian business leader said the two countries' decision to normalize relations has had very positive effect on Iran's economy and been a very useful mechanism, expressing hope that Iran's positive interactions with other counties would continue.

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Kashefi noted that Iran and Saudi Arabia have great potential for cooperation in the oil, gas, petrochemical and technological sectors.