TEHRAN, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) -- Iran on Monday announced that it welcomes dialogue with Saudi Arabia to settle mutual issues and talks with regional states to set up a coalition for the security of the region.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Monday that "there has always been a chance to solve these problems (with Saudi Arabia) through dialogue."
Iran welcomes any mediatory attempt to calm tensions with Saudi Arabia, Mousavi said, expressing hope that the Saudi side is also "ready" for alleviating tensions.
Besides, Iran welcomes the mediatory attempts by the Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, he said.
Abdul Mahdi said on Thursday after his visit to Saudi Arabia that he was optimistic about preventing a regional war.
On Sunday, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud said he would prefer a political and peaceful solution to a military one over conflicts with Iran.
Riyadh has blamed Tehran for attacks on Saudi oil fields, the allegations which have been denied by Iran.
On Monday, spokesman for Iranian government Ali Rabiee confirmed that Saudi leaders have sent messages to Iran's president through a head of a third state for negotiations on mutual issues.
"We must see signs of it (Saudi's goodwill) without any ambiguity, and the first sign of it should be a halt of aggression against Yemen and put an end to the massacre of Yemenis," Rabiee told reporters.
Iran would welcome a change in Saudi behavior, Rabiee said, adding that "if they genuinely seek to change their behavior, we would welcome that."
Iran still endorses cease-fire as the solution to Yemen conflict and will do its utmost to contribute to this end, he pointed out.
On the same day, Rabiee also announced Iran's readiness for talks on a regional coalition for establishment of peace. He was referring to the recent proposal by the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani who urged the regional states to converge together and solve their problems without the interference of the cross-regional powers.
Iran's proposal for "Coalition of Hope" does not condition the security of the region to the presence of non-regional powers, Rabiee said in his weekly press conference.
Besides, Iran's plan is inclusive and does not exclude any regional country for the establishment of a comprehensive security, he said.
"Meanwhile, the Coalition of Hope is not against any country and aims at peace (among regional states) ultimately," he added.
Last week, Rouhani said that Iran's coalition initiative is aimed at securing the Strait of Hormuz and establishing regional peace and cooperation.
"We believe that the solution for (tensions in) the region will come from within the region," he said last Monday.
"Those coming from outside of the region will never bring peace or security," he said, adding that "the Americans have been in the region since 2001 ... and failed to establish security anywhere in the region."
