PM Shehbaz thanks Saudi, Turkish and Egyptian FMs for support in regional peace efforts

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday welcomed the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Egypt after a four-way meeting held on Sunday by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

In a post on X, he reaffirmed Islamabad’s call for a collective effort to end hostilities. “It was a pleasure to receive His Highness Prince Faisal bin Farhan this evening,” he said, adding that he conveyed his greetings to King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

“I reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering solidarity with the Kingdom and appreciated Saudi Arabia’s remarkable restraint in these challenging times,” Prime Minister Shehbaz said. He highlighted the importance of unity among Islamic countries and recognized Saudi Arabia’s leading role in the Muslim ummah.

“We agreed to remain in close coordination in our joint pursuit of peace and stability in the region,” the post concluded.

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In a separate post on X, Prime Minister Shehbaz shared details of his meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Egyptian Foreign Minister Dr. Badr Abdelatty.

“I emphasized the need for a collective effort to immediately end hostilities that are causing heavy loss of life, economic damage and destruction of property – not only in Iran but across several brotherly Muslim countries,” he said.

He also reaffirmed Pakistan’s “strong commitment and willingness to play a positive role in bringing both Iran and the United States to the negotiating table” and appreciated Turkiye and Egypt’s “valuable contributions” to the matter.

Shehbaz concluded by expressing gratitude for the countries’ “confidence in Pakistan’s sincere efforts for regional peace and stability.”

After the conclusion of the four-way talks, the visiting dignitaries left Islamabad, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on X early Monday morning.

Yesterday’s meeting concluded with preliminary discussions that reportedly focused on proposals to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping. Foreign ministers from the three regional powers landed in Islamabad for the talks. The talks came as Iran warned the US against launching a ground attack and global oil prices rose amid continued fighting between Iran, the US and Israel.

The countries meeting in Pakistan have sent proposals to Washington related to maritime traffic and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, five sources with knowledge of the matter said Reutersas part of a wider effort to stabilize shipping flows.

The Strait of Hormuz used to be a conduit for about a fifth of global oil and liquid natural gas supplies, but Iran has effectively halted shipping flows through it in response to US and Israeli airstrikes that began a month ago.

Pakistan, which like Turkiye borders Iran, has used its close ties to both Tehran and Washington to emerge as an important diplomatic channel in the conflict, while Ankara and Cairo have also played a role.

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A Pakistani source said proposals, including from Egypt, had been sent to the White House by the countries before Sunday’s meeting, and that they included toll structures in the Suez Canal.

Two other Pakistani sources said that Turkiye, ⁠Egypt and Saudi Arabia could form a consortium to manage oil flows through the waterway and had asked Pakistan to participate. The first Pakistani source said Islamabad had not been formally asked to participate and maintains it will not.

The proposal for a management consortium had been discussed with the US and Iran, the sources said.

After the four-way talks, Dar announced in a televised statement that Islamabad could host high-voltage talks between Iran and the US “in the coming days”. “I briefed the visiting foreign ministers on the prospects for potential talks between the US and Iran in Islamabad. The visiting foreign ministers expressed their full support for this initiative,” Dar said.

Further, he said, “Pakistan will be honored to host and facilitate meaningful talks between the two sides for a comprehensive and lasting solution,” adding that both Tehran and Washington had expressed confidence in Islamabad’s role as a neutral facilitator.