TEHRAN, June 14: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal arrived in the Iranian capital on Saturday for talks diplomatic sources say are likely to centre on members of Al Qaeda detained in Iran.

The official news agency IRNA said Prince Saud, heading a high-ranking delegation, was greeted upon arrival by his Iranian counterpart, Kamal Kharazi.

Mr Kharazi was quoted as insisting on the need for “all countries in the region to cooperate in the fight against terrorism and extremism. Cooperation between Tehran and Riyadh exists because terrorism threatens us both.”

During his one-day visit, he is also lined up for talks with President Mohammad Khatami and powerful former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who heads the Islamic republic’s highest political arbitration body.

According to a diplomatic source in Riyadh, Prince Saud will want to know from his Iranian hosts if the fugitive Al Qaeda detainees being held here include any Saudis.—AFP