ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has arrived in Antalya, Turkiye on the last leg of his Middle East diplomacy tour, he said on Friday, amid Islamabad’s push to secure a diplomatic solution to the United States-Israeli war on Iran.
Pakistan has been spearheading diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the war, paused since April 8 for two weeks, with Islamabad acting as a key mediator between Iranian and US officials since the beginning of the US-Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28.
Sharif this week visited Saudi Arabia and Qatar, where he met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to discuss the ongoing conflict and Islamabad’s efforts for a dialogue.
The prime minister, who is scheduled to attend the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, said he looked forward to “meaningful engagements” with world leaders to advance lasting peace in the region.
“At the gracious invitation of my dear brother, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, I have arrived in the beautiful and vibrant city of Antalya among dear friends to attend the Antalya Diplomacy Forum,” Sharif said on X.
“I look forward to meaningful engagements with fellow leaders as we work together to promote dialogue, deepen understanding, and advance lasting peace.”
Separately, Pakistan's foreign office said Sharif's engagements in Antalya will include high-level panel sessions, bilateral meetings with counterparts, and focused sideline interactions aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation and "advancing dialogue and diplomacy on pressing regional and global challenges."
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will address the three-day Antalya Diplomacy Forum as it opens on Friday in the Mediterranean holiday resort of Antalya.
The foreign ministers of Turkey, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt are to meet on the sidelines of the forum, with the war and the blockade of the crucial Strait of Hormuz expected to dominate. The timing of the meeting has not yet been announced.
"We are making the necessary efforts to reduce tensions, extend the ceasefire, and continue the negotiations," Erdogan said in an address to his ruling AKP party in parliament this week.
"Negotiations cannot take place with clenched fists. Weapons must not be allowed to speak again instead of words. The window of opportunity opened by the ceasefire must be fully utilised."
Sharif began a three-nation visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkiye on Wednesday, making his first stop in Jeddah to meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The two figures discussed regional tensions following the US-Israel’s war on Iran and Islamabad’s efforts for a peace deal, Sharif’s office said.
“The Crown Prince appreciated the constructive role of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir in the peace process,” Sharif’s office said in a statement on Thursday.
Munir, the country’s all-powerful chief of defense forces, is currently on a separate visit to Tehran in continuation of the Islamabad talks.
In his meeting with the Qatari emir, Sharif stressed the need for dialogue and de-escalation as Islamabad stepped up its mediation efforts to broker a peace deal between the US and Iran.
“We discussed the evolving regional situation, particularly in the Gulf region, and underscored the importance of de-escalation, dialogue, and close international coordination to ensure peace and stability,” Sharif said, condemning Iran’s attacks targeting Qatar and other regional states in response to US-Israeli strikes.
Pakistan has emerged as a key mediator between the US and Iran to end the war in the Middle East while also condemning Iran’s attacks against Gulf states.
The South Asian country is pushing for a second round of talks between the US and Iran after the first round of direct negotiations between both sides on Apr. 11 in Islamabad failed to result in an agreement.
