ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is positioning itself as a bridge builder to help ease rising tensions in the Middle East, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif traveling to Saudi Arabia for talks focused on regional peace and security, the Foreign Office said on Thursday.
Sharif left earlier in the day for what officials described as a brief visit to the Kingdom at a time when the region is facing heightened volatility after the United States and Israel launched airstrikes against Iran. Subsequently, Tehran said it was targeting American military bases in Gulf states, prompting condemnations from these countries, which said several strikes had hit civilian infrastructure.
The spillover of the conflict in the region has complicated diplomatic efforts aimed at calming the situation, but the Foreign Office spokesperson, Tahir Andrabi, said Pakistan had been in regular contact with capitals across the region since the crisis erupted and is trying to keep channels of communication open.
“And we are playing the role of a bridge builder in a sense that our principal position on issues with respect to sovereignty, international law and the UN Charter and with respect to dialogue and diplomacy is respected in all regional capitals,” Andrabi said during the weekly press briefing.
