It was notable that the first statement issued by the new Iranian Foreign Minister, Ali Akbar Salehi, focussed on the need to improve his country's relations with two of its neighbours: Saudi Arabia and Turkey. At a time when relations with Turkey are considered to be at their best for 30 years, relations with Saudi Arabia have reached a new low, and are likely to deteriorate further. Ousted minister Manouchehr Mottaki was not the cause of such deterioration, and thus it would be wrong to think that his dismissal would remove the obstacles between the two countries.

Acting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi made a nice statement about the necessity of Iran improving its relations with Saudi Arabia, saying "Saudi Arabia deserves to have special political ties with Iran. Iran and Saudi Arabia, as two effective countries in the Islamic world, can resolve many problems together."