Saudi Arab lauded Pakistan role in ongoing ME crisis
14 January, 2020
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, during his meeting with Shah Mehmood Qureshi, lauded Pakistan’s role in stability and peace in Gulf. Moreover, Saudi Foreign Minister reaffirmed the strategic importance of Saudi-Pakistan relations and the resolve to deepen mutual cooperation in all fields.
After the assassination of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad on Friday, Pakistan urged both the United States and Iran to avoid further escalation.
Moreover, Pakistan reaffirmed its resolve not to become a part of any conflict in the region and renewed its offer for mediating in the Middle East crisis.
In a statement Saturday, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said Iran’s confession of unintentionally shooting down a Ukrainian passenger plane is likely to reduce concerns over the matter. He said that the region cannot afford another war and stressed that Pakistan will continue to play its role in lessening the ongoing tensions.
Prime Minister Imran Khan had visited the Iranian capital in October as part of an initiative to defuse tensions in the Gulf and mediate between Iran and Saudi Arabia. He also visited Saudi Arabia for further talks on the matter.
Importantly, Iran has announced it would no longer abide by the limits placed on its nuclear program under a deal it signed with the United States and other world powers in 2015. Besides the United States, China, Russia, Germany, France and Britain signed this treaty.
But Germany, France and Britain have urged Tehran to drop measures that go against the agreement.
The European leaders reminded the US and Iran that “it is crucial now to de-escalate” and urged “all players involved to show utmost restraint and responsibility”.
Earlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in a telephonic conversation with Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Saturday extended condolences on the Quetta mosque blast, and praised Pakistan’s effort for de-escalating tensions in the region.
Turkish FM expressed grief on the terror attack in the provincial capital of Balochistan which claimed many innocent lives. He condemned the loss of valuable lives and expressed solidarity of Turkey with
Pakistan on this tragic incident. Meanwhile, Mevlut also ensured full support of Turkey to Pakistan on establishing peace in the region following the killing of the Iranian top military commander, Qasem Soleimani, by the US. He lauded the effort for de-escalating US-Iran tensions in Mideast.
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