Pakistan will host Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt for talks on March 29-30 on the Iran war as Islamabad positions itself as a potential venue for U.S.-Iran negotiations on the month-old conflict.
The four countries' foreign ministers will hold "in-depth discussions on a range of issues, including efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region" during the two-day talks, Pakistan's foreign ministry said on Saturday.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Turkiye’s Hakan Fidan and Egyptian FM Dr. Badr Abdelatty are visiting Islamabad on March 29–30 at the invitation of their Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar.
“During the visit, the Foreign Ministers will hold in-depth discussions on a range of issues, including efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region,” the Pakistani foreign office said.
The four nations have been involved in trying to mediate between Washington and Tehran in the war launched by the U.S. and Israel on February 28, and all are acutely vulnerable to threats to energy supplies and trade routes.
Pakistan has conveyed to Tehran a U.S. proposal for ending the war and offered to host talks, with Iranian officials indicating any negotiations could take place in Pakistan or Turkey.
Iran has been reviewing the 15-point U.S. proposal, although one official has dismissed it as "one-sided and unfair". Its demands range from dismantling Iran's nuclear programme to curbing its missile development and effectively handing over control of the Strait of Hormuz, according to sources and reports.
