Foreign ministers from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey expressed support for US-Iran peace talks as the war in the Middle East intensified into its fifth week.
The foreign ministers from the four countries met in Islamabad on Sunday to discuss the worsening conflict and prospects for peace. Pakistan would be honored to host talks for a ceasefire, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, who is also the country's foreign minister, told reporters after the meeting.
"We have remained actively involved in all efforts and initiatives in bringing this conflict to an end," he said. "We have remained actively engaged with the US leadership as well in our efforts to de-escalate the situation and finding a solution to the conflict."
The foreign ministers called for creating conditions for structured negotiations between the relevant parties, Dar said, and advocated for dialog and diplomacy as the only viable path to end the conflict.
Pakistan has emerged as a key player in seeking to broker peace, leveraging its warm ties with President Donald Trump and longstanding bonds with the Islamic Republic. Pakistan also has a mutual defense pact with Saudi Arabia—which has been targeted by Iran strikes—and Islamabad is motivated to find a resolution to the fighting to avoid being dragged into the conflict.
The US has sent a 15-point ceasefire proposal to Iran through Pakistan, which Tehran has rejected. A key contention is the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for gas and oil supplies, triggering a surge in crude prices and gas shortages in Asia. Only a handful of tankers from countries including China, India and Pakistan, have been allowed safe passage through the strait.
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud met separately with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Dar and National Security Adviser Muhammad Asim Malik on Sunday.
"While reaffirming Pakistan's full and unwavering solidarity and support with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Prime Minister appreciated the remarkable restraint exercised by Saudi Arabia amid the current crisis and assured the Saudi Foreign Minister that Pakistan would always stand shoulder to shoulder with Saudi Arabia," Sharif said in a social media post on X.
Despite the push for peace talks, the conflict appeared to be widening in recent days. The US has been amassing thousands of ground troops in the region while the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen launched ballistic missiles at Israel on Saturday.
Pakistan's powerful army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, has cultivated increasingly closer ties with the Trump administration over the last year, elevating Islamabad's position as a peacemaker in the crisis.