I do not know why some people expect that the talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which are being held in Baghdad, would have an “unprecedented” outcome in the history of relations between the two countries.

Is there any optimism? Or is it a normal summary statement about the twists and turns in bilateral relations? It is true that diplomatic relations between Riyadh and Tehran have been severed following a sovereign Saudi decision in this regard in 2016. Even before that, the course of relations has been oscillating ever since the Iranian Revolution led by Khomeini in 1979.

Iran’s hostility toward Saudi Arabia has been blatant since the first day of the Khomeini revolution, and the Kingdom began to suffer from the “politicization” of the Iranian Hajj mission for successive seasons and thus threatening the safety of pilgrims. This was something about which Saudi Arabia could not be silent.

In fact, what makes me feel that the desired improvement in the relations between the two countries will not be at the required level and that is something related to the long and broad history of the Persian Iran’s relations with the Arabs over the centuries.

It is not a trial of the past with the tools of the present; rather, it is a behavior we have been accustomed to since ancient times, and its results were evident in Baghdad and Damascus. And here it is being repeated in full in the 20th and 21st centuries, in terms of Iran’s expansionist policies aimed at extending influence and swallowing national sovereignty in a number of Arab capitals such as Damascus, Baghdad, Beirut and Sana’a. This cunning strategy relies on mobilizing militias, embracing terrorist organizations, and employing them to threaten states and citizens and their sovereignty over their territories.

That is why it is relevant to quote an old popular saying among the Arabs: “If treachery exists among people, then trust is incapable in everyone”. This indicates that the stability of Iraq is in the control of Iran, in addition to its control of the will of the Lebanese state through the terrorist Hezbollah militia, apart from managing the unrest in Yemen through its Houthi tail. It also stands behind the strife and unrest in Bahrain, and its spies are there in Kuwait. It is killing people in Syria.

Iran does not want to devour the Gulf and the Arabs alone, but rather extends its evil hands to Africa and Latin America through exporting its ideologies and dogmas, as well as through drug trafficking, money laundering, and other suspicious activities. This is why people talk about their lack of optimism about the possibility of Iran complying with the minimum requirements of good neighborliness and what international relations required of respect. It shall never be forgotten that the entire history of the Persians is replete with treachery, betrayal, and breach of covenants and pacts.

That is why it was said in the ancient Arab proverb: “Don’t feel safe with the madman with a knife in his hand! Over the centuries, the Arabs have known about the Persians that a basic tendency to subjugate others is deeply rooted in their souls. It is a hidden hatred that transcends to encompass a desire for revenge that reaches the point of planning to strike even the Islamic sanctities, apart from the relentless attempts to target Saudi soil, and inflict harm and death on the Kingdom’s citizens and residents.

What is new in the Iranian “dance of death” is that this time it is performed by the Iranian agents in Yemen, Iraq and Lebanon after it was perpetrated in the past through direct Persian attacks on Arab countries.

But, of course, we will never close the door in the face of hope that Iran would return to an awareness that will make it understand the necessity of peaceful coexistence. There is an “eternal neighborhood,” as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman said in a recent interview. It is a neighborhood that requires decency, coexistence and good treatment. However, it continues to remain our duty to be cautious about every possible treachery and betrayal on the part of Iran and its agents and stooges, at a time when Tehran is negotiating with Saudi Arabia and at the same time instructing its agent in Sana’a to attack Saudi Arabia!

It is certain that the Kingdom is conscious and capable, and it will not allow Iran to bite it from the same hole more than once. As the proverb says, “Good with good and evil with evil, and the beginner is more unjust.”

Saudi Arabia cannot feel secure with a lunatic with a knife in his hand, and whose entire history is ruin, destruction and terrorism. But it will not close the door in front of the hope of restoring relations that remove tension, open the doors of cooperation and achieve the possibility of coexistence without treachery or betrayal.