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Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan has had a phone conversation with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.
It is the first publicly announced contact between the countries since Iran launched strikes against its Gulf neighbours in retaliation for Israeli-US attacks.
During the call, the two ministers “reviewed the latest developments and discussed ways to reduce tensions to restore security and stability in the region”, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The conversation followed the announcement of a two-week ceasefire between Iran and the US and came only days before scheduled talks between the two sides later this week in Islamabad.
Pakistan has positioned itself as a peace broker in the conflict, leveraging its stable ties with Tehran and Washington, as well as shared borders and cultural links with Iran.
Prince Faisal was part of a meeting hosted by Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in March, along with counterparts from Turkey and Egypt, to discuss de-escalating the conflict.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a strategic defence agreement in 2025, cementing long-standing ties but also restricting how far Islamabad could go in supporting Tehran.
All Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, have come under attack since February 28, as Iran retaliated against Israeli and US air raids. Iran has repeatedly struck the region and effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil normally flows.
Shortly after US President Donald Trump announced the ceasefire with Iran late on Tuesday, missile and drone attacks were reported across the Gulf.
In the early hours of Wednesday, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait said they were working to shoot down incoming threats, with further interceptions reported later in the day.
Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline was also hit on Wednesday in an Iranian attack, along with other facilities, Reuters reported citing an industry source. The pipeline is the kingdom’s only crude export route following Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Last month, Prince Faisal warned that Iran's attacks on Saudi Arabia and its neighbours had destroyed any trust with Tehran. He also said Iran “is no longer a strategic partner – it has never been”. It could have been one “if it had taken a different course”, Prince Faisal added.
