The kingdom "has never seen a ballot box”, Rouhani told a press conference
following a landslide vote in the country’s presidential election on May 19, in
which nearly 42 million voters participated.
"Buying arms or building weapons won't make a country powerful. Military power
is only a part of strength and we are fully aware of that. But the foundation of
power is national strength and this is only achieved through elections," Rouhani
asserted.
"I hope that the day will come that Saudi Arabia will adopt this path," he said.
"They should have polling stations in place for the people and let the rulers
not be on a hereditary basis. They should be picked by the people."
Rouhani’s comments come after U.S. President Donald Trump
sealed a multibillion arms deal with Saudi officials during his maiden trip
abroad as U.S. president.
The agreement, which is worth $350 billion over 10 years and $110 billion that
will take effect immediately, was hailed by the White House as "a significant
expansion of…[the] security relationship" between the two countries.
Saudi Arabia and Iran haven't had diplomatic relations since early 2016. That's
when Saudi Arabia executed a prominent Shiite cleric and protesters in Iran
attacked two of the kingdom's diplomatic posts.
Saudi Arabia immediately cut diplomatic ties and other Arab countries lying on
the southern shores of the Persian Gulf have taken a harder line on Iran since.
In similar comments, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that Iran
derives stability from the people and not the coalitions.
"We derive stability not from ‘coalitions’, but from our people, who - unlike
many - do vote. Iranians must be respected & are ready to engage,” he tweeted on
Friday.
SOURCE: Tehran Times