Saudi king welcomes Iran's Ahmadinejad in Riyadh

Saudi Arabia's king on Saturday personally welcomed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad upon his arrival in Riyadh in a move many hope will help calm sectarian tensions threatening the Middle East.

King Abdullah received Ahmadinejad at the airport in the capital, and the two men were expected to begin talks immediately, the official Saudi Press Agencyreported.

Ahmadinejad's trip comes amid rapid developments that threaten to further isolate his country over its refusal to suspend uranium enrichment.

On Saturday, diplomats from the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany worked to reach an agreement on new sanctions against Iran.

The push for new sanctions follows an International Atomic Energy Agency report in late February that Iran was expanding enrichment instead of suspending it.

Iran is a strong backer of Lebanon's Hezbollah and has close ties to Shia political parties in Iraq.

Saudi newspapers, which are government-guided, struck a welcoming tone in editorials, saying they hoped Ahmadinejad's visit signals an Iranian willingness to revise its regional policies and work with, rather than against, Arab governments.