Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan discussed the situation in the Middle East following what they described as Israel's "unprovoked and unjustified aggression against Iran," the prime minister's office said in a statement on Saturday. During the telephone conversation, the two leaders agreed that Israeli military strikes had violated Iran's sovereignty and were a clear contravention of the UN Charter and international law, jeopardising regional and global peace, the statement said. Sharif and Erdoğan also denounced what they termed Israel's "brazen military aggression" against the Palestinian people, which they said continued with impunity. The Pakistani and Turkish leaders emphasised that the international community and the United Nations must act collectively to urge Israel to immediately end its "aggressive posturing and illegal actions" against Iran, the Palestinians and other countries in the region, according to the statement. Sharif renewed Pakistan's commitment to upholding international peace and said the country would continue to play a constructive role, both as a member of the UN Security Council and in other forums such as the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Pakistani PM added that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar would represent Pakistan at an upcoming OIC Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Istanbul. The prime minister also congratulated Erdoğan for being decorated by the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF). The statement concluded by noting that both leaders had apprised one another of their diplomatic outreach efforts and agreed to remain in close contact to coordinate on peace initiatives.
