Iran’s Foreign Ministry has called the recent comments by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about Iran, Turkey and the Muslim Brotherhood “childish,” and has instead invited him to Iran for a multisided dialogue.
During his first trip to Egypt since becoming crown prince, the Saudi leader — speaking to Egyptian media and borrowing from President George W. Bush’s infamous “Axis of Evil” State of the Union Speech — described Iran, Turkey and Islamist groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood this week as being part of a “triangle of evil.” Bush had included Iran, Iraq and North Korea in the axis in his 2002 speech, which helped pave the way for the 2003 Iraq invasion, one of the most disastrous and deadly US foreign policy actions.