Egypt and Pakistan stressed the need to return to implementing the temporary agreement signed between the United States and Iran last June, and to push towards ending the war that has been ongoing for months, in parallel with intensifying efforts to contain the escalation and restore calm in the region.
This came during a phone call between Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aty and his Pakistani counterpart, Muhammad Ishaq Dar, where the two sides stressed the importance of resuming implementation of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding signed last June 18 between Washington and Tehran, and working to reach a comprehensive and sustainable agreement that enhances regional security and stability and prevents the expansion of the scope of confrontation.
The two ministers agreed to continue consultation and close coordination during the next phase, whether at the bilateral level or through the “four regional party mechanism,” in a way that supports joint efforts to reduce escalation and enhance stability.
This mechanism includes Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan, and constitutes a consultative and coordination framework aimed at unifying positions and converging views on regional developments.
Pakistan and Qatar play a major mediating role in the efforts aimed at ending the war that broke out on February 28 following American and Israeli attacks on Iran, while other countries participate in diplomatic movements aimed at stopping the escalation.
The Egyptian-Pakistani contact came after Iran announced, early Sunday, that it had targeted an American boat in the Strait of Hormuz, following the US army’s targeting of 3 Iranian oil tankers in the waters of the Gulf.
These developments come in light of faltering diplomatic efforts to end the confrontation, coinciding with Washington increasing economic pressure on Tehran and imposing more sanctions on it and on the parties and countries that deal with it.
