SAUDI ARABIA:Saudi's invitation reflects a growing accord between Sunni and Shia powers, writes Michael Jansen.
Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was an honoured guest at yesterday's banquet held by Saudi King Abdullah to celebrate the Feast of Sacrifice at the climax of the annual Muslim pilgrimage of the hajj.
The feast commemorates Abraham's readiness to slay his son at the command of God, who provided a ram as a substitute for the boy.
Mr Ahmadinejad attended the banquet after performing the main hajj rituals. These began on Tuesday with prayers at Mount Arafat near Mecca where the Prophet Muhammad stood to deliver his last sermon; a night of contemplation under the stars on the plain of Muzdalifa; the stoning of a pillar symbolising temptation; and the sacrifice of a lamb or goat, sharing the meat with family, friends and the poor.
Mr Ahmadinejad is the first Iranian head of state to be invited by Riyadh to attend the hajj. His visit is the culmination of an effort to achieve rapprochement with the Islamic republic begun by King Abdullah before he took the throne. The hajj is a traditional time for meetings between political leaders and matchmakers.
After the 2003 ousting of the secular Baathist regime in Iraq, the Saudis maintained a distance from Iran, which has considerable influence among US-allied Shias and Kurds who now govern Iraq. However, the Bush administration's failure to pacify the country and rising anti-US feeling in the region seem to have compelled the Sunni kingdom, a close US ally, to resume the effort to boost relations with the Shia regime in Tehran.
The Saudis are also motivated by a desire to convince Iran not to meddle with its own Shia minority in the oil-producing eastern province and with Shia communities in the Gulf.
Riyadh was behind the invitation to Mr Ahmadinejad to attend the recent Gulf Co-operation Council summit and King Abdullah escorted him into the hall at the opening session.
Since Iran has not bowed to US sanctions and military threats designed to force a halt to its nuclear programme, Riyadh may have decided that conciliation could be a more effective means of dealing with Iran than confrontation.
Saudi Arabia, the premier Sunni power, is betting on the desire of Iran, the sole Shia country, to boost Muslim unity in the face of Western political, economic, social and cultural challenges.