RIYADH — Saudi Arabia has proposed a non-aggression pact bringing together Middle Eastern countries and Iran, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. The initiative is modeled on a 1970s European agreement designed to ease Cold War tensions.
The Saudi initiative has won the support of several European countries and European Union institutions, the British newspaper said. It is not yet clear whether the United States and Israel will back the effort.
Saudi Arabia is drafting the new pact using the 1975 Helsinki Accords as a model. That historic agreement, signed by the Soviet Union, the United States and European countries, recognized post-World War II European borders. All sides also agreed to safeguard human rights and cooperate on economic, scientific and humanitarian matters.
An Arab diplomat told the Financial Times that “most Arab and Muslim countries, as well as Iran,” would welcome such an agreement for the Middle East. Iran has previously called on Gulf countries to shut down U.S. military bases on their territory.
Analysts said Israel would strongly oppose any formal agreement that reduces tensions between Arab states and Iran. It also remains unclear how the pact would address sensitive issues such as the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.
Tehran wants to maintain its authority over the waterway and has introduced its own toll system for shipping there. Before the war began, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states had urged the United States not to strike Iran, fearing that war would weaken the country while strengthening its Islamic system of governance.
A recent U.S. Central Intelligence Agency report echoed those concerns. It said Iran’s stockpile of long-range missiles remained largely intact even after the war and that there were no signs the government would fall.
Gulf countries have been divided in their response to the conflict. Despite efforts to avoid being drawn in, they have come under attack by thousands of Iranian drones and missiles. The Trump administration, meanwhile, has been pressing them to join the war against Iran.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report