On Saturday, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah had individual telephone talks with India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar to make attempts at lowering the rising tensions between the two countries.
As per a statement issued by the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the talks were about de-escalating the current conflict and stopping military clashes between India and Pakistan. "His Highness reiterated the Kingdom's pledge to the security and stability of the region as well as its balanced and friendly relations with both countries," the ministry stated.
These diplomatic endeavours unfolded as Pakistan persistently targeted military and civilian facilities, including places of worship, in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and Rajasthan, having little inclination towards relaxing tensions.
The demand came just moments after Saudi Arabia's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir made an impromptu trip to New Delhi on Thursday and met with EAM Jaishankar. His visit, viewed by analysts as a surprise move, came against the backdrop of increased cross-border tensions following the April 22 terror attack at Pahalgam that left 26 civilians dead. In retaliation for that strike, the Indian Armed Forces initiated 'Operation Sindoor' on Wednesday, targeting nine key terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
In another Saturday communiqué, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry confirmed that Al-Jubeir's visits to India and Pakistan on May 8–9 were conducted on the orders of Saudi leadership, with the objective of brokering peace and fostering diplomatic solutions.
"The visit demonstrates the Kingdom's continued efforts to lower tensions, stop fighting, and urge all sides to settle differences through talks," the ministry added.
During his meeting with Al-Jubeir, EAM Jaishankar emphasized India’s uncompromising approach to tackling terrorism and outlined New Delhi’s perspective on counterterrorism measures.
Saudi Arabia had already condemned the Pahalgam terrorist attack in strong terms, reiterating its opposition to all violence and extremism. "The Kingdom is strongly against the targeting of civilians and condemns all terrorism. We offer our deepest condolences to the families of the victims and to the government and people of India," the statement read.
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