Hassan Rouhani
Hassan RouhaniReuters

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday that Saudi Arabia presents his country as an enemy because it wants to cover up its defeats in the region.

"Saudi Arabia was unsuccessful in Qatar, was unsuccessful in Iraq, in Syria and recently in Lebanon. In all of these areas, they were unsuccessful," Rouhani said in an interview on state television, and quoted by Reuters. "So they want to cover up their defeats."

Rouhani’s comments come amid ongoing tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia, which are regional rivals that back rival sides in the wars and political crises throughout the region.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly called on Iran to stop its “meddling” in the affairs of the kingdom's neighbors.

Iran has fired back, accusing Saudi Arabia of trying to “drag the entire region into confrontation”.

The tensions have increased in recent weeks following the resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who announced he was stepping down in an address from Riyadh and blamed Iran and its Lebanese proxy Hezbollah for his decision.

Hariri later retracted his resignation but has said he would step down again if Hezbollah does not accept a new power-sharing arrangement for Lebanon.

Last week, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman called the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, "the new Hitler of the Middle East" in an interview with the New York Times.

Iran later fired back, calling the Saudi crown prince “immature” and “weak-minded.”