Germany urged Riyadh and Tehran on Monday to restore diplomatic relations and warned it would take into account developments in Saudi Arabia when it decides on arms exports there.
France meanwhile called for a “de-escalation” of tensions.
In Berlin, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert said, “We call on both countries to resume dialogue. We appeal to both countries... To use all means at their disposal to improve their diplomatic relations.”
He reiterated Germany’s “dismay” over Saudi Arabia’s execution of 47 prisoners, including a Shiite cleric, which sparked attacks on the Saudi embassy in Tehran followed by a severing of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Seibert said relations between the key regional players are “of fundamental importance for resolving the crises in Syria and Yemen and for the stability of the entire region”.
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s spokesman Martin Schaefer said that “for years the international community, including Germany, has been working to help ensure that the region’s many crises and conflicts... Can be contained.”
“Saudi Arabia and Iran must contribute to crisis resolution,” he told a Presss conference.
A spokesman said it was “following developments” in Saudi, and that they would “come into play” when it decides on approval for future defence exports to the country.