Article: Saudi Arabia, Iran rush toward closer relations

RIYADH - Saudi Arabia and Iran, rivals for leadership in the Muslim world for more than a decade, are moving quickly to improve relations since the end of the Persian Gulf war, further isolating Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

Their speedy rapprochement, which has included an invitation for Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani to visit Saudi Arabia, marks perhaps the most dramatic shift in bilateral relations so far in the postwar Persian Gulf region.

The two countries are the world's largest oil exporters, a result of the United Nations trade embargo on Iraq, which had been the second largest after Saudi Arabia.

"Iran and Saudi Arabia have turned a new page in their mutual ...

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