Iran’s top security official said on Wednesday that Tehran and Riyadh had held discussions on defense cooperation during talks in the Saudi capital, while the United States and Saudi Arabia concluded their largest-ever counter-drone exercise in the region.
Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and other senior Saudi officials in Riyadh.
Iranian media quoted Larijani as saying Saudi officials had already viewed regional security with concern before Israel’s strike on Qatar this month, and “now saw the situation much more clearly.”
“Countries in the region feel that what Iran has long said -- that an adventurous actor prevents stability -- has now taken a more concrete shape,” Larijani said, in comments seen as a veiled reference to Israel. He added the talks could pave the way for “greater understanding to counter shared threats and strengthen regional stability.”
Larijani’s visit to Riyadh, followed by a regional tour that also included Baghdad and Beirut in August, came just days after an Israeli strike in Doha killed Hamas leaders on September 9. Qatar and other Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, condemned the attack as a violation of sovereignty.
The meetings marked the latest high-level contact since the two countries restored diplomatic ties in 2023 after years of rupture. In April, Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman made a rare trip to Tehran, where he was received by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
US-Saudi counter-drone exercise
The Iran–Saudi meetings coincided with the conclusion of Red Sands 2025, a large-scale US-Saudi exercise focused on countering drones, held from September 7 to 14 at the Shamal-2 range in northeastern Saudi Arabia.
US Central Command described it as the biggest live-fire counter-drone exercise ever conducted in the Middle East, involving more than 600 personnel and 20 advanced systems.
The drills tested radar, electro-optical and acoustic sensors, as well as electronic warfare platforms designed to detect, jam or disable drones.
Ground-based systems such as Skyguard and Shikra were paired with the Mobile Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aircraft Integrated Defeat System (MLIDS) to counter simulated swarms. A final defensive layer involved shotgun-fired “drone defeat rounds” to stop low-flying aircraft.
US and Saudi commanders said the exercise directly addressed threats posed by armed drones used in conflicts from Yemen to Ukraine, expressing their shared commitment to regional air defense.
Defense officials said the Red Sands series, launched in 2023, is now central to planning for integrated air and missile defense across the Persian Gulf and may expand to include other regional partners.
