Iranian and Saudi panellists spar at Xiangshan Forum over Middle East attacks

A plenary session at a Beijing security conference turned into a heated exchange on Wednesday, when a senior Iranian defence official and a Saudi think tank chief traded accusations over the conflict in the Middle East.

In the city where just a few years ago Iran and Saudi Arabia signed a peace deal, Prince Turki al-Faisal, chairman of the Saudi think tank the King Faisal Centre for Research and Islamic Studies, accused Iran of not respecting “the sovereignty of the Arab states”.

In a clear reference to Tehran’s attacks on the US’ Arab allies, Prince Turki told the Xiangshan Forum that this had culminated in “aggressive and unlawful attacks on [the allies’] territories and assets in the recent war”.

Brigadier General Mohammad Taghi Osanlou, deputy for operations of the General Headquarters of the Armed Forces of Iran, swiftly rejected the suggestion of any wrongdoing by Tehran, saying the attacks were aimed at US assets.