Egypt ramps up diplomacy to cool Mideast tensions

Cairo: Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty held phone talks with his counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Germany, plus European Commission officials, to push for de-escalation in the Middle East, the Foreign Ministry said.

The discussions underscored the urgent need for "immediate de-escalation," with all parties agreeing that diplomacy and dialogue are the only bulwarks against regional chaos and its dire fallout, Xinhua news agency reported.

Egypt is also coordinating with partners to broker US-Iran negotiations, aiming to avert a broader crisis with global ramifications.

Abdelatty later departed for Islamabad for a quadrilateral meeting with ministers from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey to address the escalating military clashes.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, speaking Saturday at Istanbul's International Strategic Communication Summit, urged "maximum restraint." He warned that prolonged conflict could inflict lasting social and psychological scars, deepen divisions among intertwined nations, and destabilize the wider region—echoing past near-misses averted by diplomacy.

These moves follow US-Israeli strikes on Iran since February 28, met by retaliatory attacks from Iran and allies on Israeli and US targets across the Middle East.

(Inputs from IANS)