Diplomats from the United States, Europe, the Gulf and Iran held calls on Thursday regarding an anticipated retaliation to the suspected Israeli strike on the Iranian Consulate in Syria, reflecting international concerns that the tensions stemming from the Gaza war could lead to a full-blown regional war.
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan received a call from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The two “discussed developments in the region with ways to reduce escalation” as well as the situations in Sudan and Gaza, including efforts to deliver more aid to the latter, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a post on X.
Blinken has additionally spoken to his Chinese, Turkish and European counterparts in recent days in order to "make clear that escalation is not in anyone's interest and that countries should urge Iran not to escalate," State Department spokesperson Matt Miller told reporters on Thursday.
The same day, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian spoke to his British, German and Turkish counterparts. The official Islamic Republic News Agency reported that Amir-Abdollahian expressed “criticism of London's inaction in condemning the Israeli regime's air attack on the consular section of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus” during a call with British Foreign Secretary David Cameron.
