Senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan held talks with Iran’s leadership in Tehran on Monday, in a rare joint diplomatic mission aimed at stopping the Middle East conflict from reigniting.
The delegation — Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin — met Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and security chief Mohsen Rezaei. It was the first joint visit to Tehran by the three countries since they formed a defence alliance in Mecca in August.
Iran described the discussions as “very good”. Rezaei, who heads the Supreme National Security Council, said on state television: “I feel that a new atmosphere is emerging in the region.” The meeting ended without concrete announcements, with the sides agreeing to continue discussions, according to Iranian state media.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said the visit aimed to find ways to “de-escalate tensions, enhance regional security and promote its stability” and to open negotiating channels to prevent a return to military escalation.
The talks come against warnings from the United States, Israel and Iran that hostilities could resume in an eight-month-old conflict, and with Yemen’s war and Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia also on the agenda. Qatari mediators were in Tehran on Sunday, working in coordination with the United States, as part of the same de-escalation effort.
Sources: Malay Mail (AFP), Associated Press, Reuters (via Haaretz).
