ABSTRACT
Secular ideological schisms disappeared with the Cold War, leaving Islam with more scope and a greater potential role. Islamic solidarity was more prominent and potentially more politically significant than in the 1980s. An important challenge to Saudi Arabia's claim to Islamic leadership is the Hajj. By 1991, both Iran and Saudi Arabia had interests in improving relations and resolving differences over Iran's participation in the annual pilgrimage. Iranian pragmatists, exemplified by Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, have focused on national interest, the need for cooperation in Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and on security matters in the Persian Gulf. They emphasise the need for better bilateral relations to regularise the Hajj and to improve relations with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and seek to put the past behind them rather than cultivate grievances over it such as the Mecca incident of 1987 which would only hinder future relations.
