An informed source in Cairo told the Saudi Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper on Tuesday that communication channels exist between Egypt and Iran, but in “circles of a special nature”.

On Monday, Nasser Kanaani, spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry, called for a resumption of diplomatic relations between the two, noting that “Egypt is an important country in the region”.

Kanaani’s statements came days after Saudi Arabia and Iran announced that they had reached a Chinese-brokered agreement to resume diplomatic relations after years of tensions.

Kanaani said the Iranian foreign minister and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi had a “quick and positive” meeting during the Baghdad II Summit that Jordan hosted late last year.

An Egyptian source told Asharq Al-Awsat that there is “high-level appreciation from Iran to Egypt and its political leadership”.

“There are no major points of divergence between the two sides except for Tehran’s relationship with the Palestinian Hamas and Jihad movements, as well as taking into account the general Egyptian principle that rejects interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries,” the source added.

Meanwhile, a former Egyptian foreign minister, Mohamed Orabi, told Asharq Al-Awsat that his country has for a long time had a chargé d’affaires with the rank of ambassador in Iran.

Orabi expressed his belief that “there is no strategic need at the current stage to accelerate steps in this regard”, while emphasising that “Iran is a country that plays a major role in the region.”