September 13, 2002	Friday	Rajab 5, 1423

DUBAI, Sept 12: Iranian President Mohammad Khatami arrived in Madina on Wednesday to perform Umra, before holding talks with Saudi leaders on US-Iraqi tensions.

Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian Vice President Mohammadali Abtahi said the talks would focus on regional tensions even though it was not an official visit.

“Iran and Saudi Arabia are two great and important countries in the region and their cooperation could help to solve the region’s problems,” he told Reuters.

Khatami said his visit comes as part of Tehran’s effort to improve cooperation between two regional powers as tension rises over a possible US attack on Iraq.

Iran and Saudi Arabia share borders with Iraq and both oppose a US attack on Baghdad. Riyadh has refused to become a launch pad for any strike.

“God willing, I will visit the holy shrines,” Khatami told reporters. “I am not taking an official delegation with me, I am going with my family, but I will meet some officials there.”

Saudi officials said the visit would last four days, with Khatami scheduled to perform Umra before meeting Crown Prince Abdullah in Jeddah on Saturday for talks on Iraq.

Iran and Saudi Arabia are both major oil producers and bilateral relations have improved since the 1997 election of the moderate Khatami, after nearly two decades of political and ideological tension.

Oil will also feature in the Jeddah talks with OPEC’s meeting to chart output policy just over a week away.—Reuters