Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi has today left Tehran for Doha to review issues of mutual interest with senior Bahraini officials, IRNA reported.
Salehi will also discuss the latest regional developments with Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and his counterpart Hamad bin Jasim bin Jabir al-Thani.
Tensions between Iran and its Arab neighbors have become even more complicated in recent years, following unrests in Bahrain. Anti-government protesters in Bahrain have been demanding that King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa be ousted and that constitutional reforms be implemented. Hundreds have camped out peacefully in the capital's Pearl Square since Feb. 14. The demonstrators, mostly Shiite Muslim, constitute 75 percent of the population.
Bahrain appealed to the Cooperation Council of Arab Gulf States with a request to send additional forces to deal with protesters. Saudi Arabia dispatched about 1,000 troops to crisis-hit Bahrain in mid March at the behest of the embattled Bahraini government. Iran, which is dominated by Shiite Muslims, regards these actions with anxiety. In response, Saudi Arabia accused Iran of unceremoniously interfering in the internal affairs of the Persian Gulf's Arab countries.
