What do Turkish-led Middle East-Europe talks aim to achieve?

As the Middle East remains on tenterhooks, regional countries at the forefront of the US-Iran crisis are stepping up all possible diplomatic efforts to de-escalate tensions. On Oct. 23, the foreign ministers of the so-called R4 (Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Egypt) and the E3+1 (the UK, France, Germany and Italy) met in Istanbul.

Initiated by Turkiye, the meeting was the first of its kind to bring together the R4 and E3 countries in this format. It represented an attempt to build a stronger bridge between regional and European powers, bringing them together to address crises that increasingly affect both regions’ security and economy.