World News for Students of English

16-03-2023 07:00

On Friday, Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to re-establish relations after years of hostility that had threatened stability and security in the Gulf and helped fuel conflicts in the Middle East from Yemen to Syria.

The deal, brokered by China, was announced after four days of previously undisclosed talks in Beijing between top security officials from the two rival Middle East powers. Both countries agreed to respect each other’s sovereignty and not interfere in internal affairs.

Saudi Arabia cut ties with Iran in 2016 after its embassy in Tehran was stormed during a dispute between the two countries over a Muslim cleric’s execution. The country also blamed Iran for attacks on its oil facilities in 2019; however, Iran denied the charges.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement carried out several attacks on Saudi Arabia, and in 2022 extended the strikes to the United Arab Emirates.

Difficult words: broker (to arrange or negotiate an agreement), undisclosed (not revealed or made known publicly), sovereignty (the power of a country to control its government).

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