ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Tuesday discussed regional developments and an upcoming four-country ministerial meeting in Istanbul, as Islamabad continued a flurry of diplomatic engagement aimed at easing tensions in the Middle East.

The call came a day after Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi held talks with Iran’s leadership in Tehran, where Naqvi said “significant progress” had been made toward restoring an Islamabad-brokered agreement between Iran and the United States.

“Discussions focused on bilateral relations, regional developments, and other matters of mutual interest,” Pakistan’s Foreign Office said in a statement on X.

“The two Ministers also discussed the upcoming meeting of the Regional Four (R4) Foreign Ministers and other forthcoming multilateral engagements.”

The R4, comprising Pakistan, Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, emerged in March following the outbreak of the Iran war as a forum for the four countries to consult on the conflict and wider regional security concerns. At its fourth consultative meeting in Cairo, it discussed the

Pakistan-brokered peace framework between Washington and Tehran, called the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed in June.

Fidan invited Dar last week to attend the group’s next foreign ministers’ meeting in Istanbul later this month, an invitation the Pakistani minister accepted, according to Pakistan’s government. An exact date has not been publicly announced.

Tuesday’s Dar-Fidan call also comes amid deepening strategic coordination between Pakistan and Türkiye.

The two countries signed the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement with Saudi Arabia on Aug. 7, pledging greater defense cooperation and collective deterrence. The accord provides that an armed attack against any one of the three countries would be considered an attack against all.

Pakistani officials have said the agreement is defensive in nature and not directed against any country.

The Foreign Office said Dar and Fidan agreed on Tuesday to remain in close contact.