The fourth ministerial meeting of the Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey quartet was held in Cairo this week. The gathering, the first since the US-Iran agreement, came amid a diplomatic flurry to close the file of the US-Iran war and de-escalate tensions across the region including in Gaza and Sudan.
The quartet mechanism emerged during the US-Israeli war on Iran as a channel for coordination among four influential regional powers and is designed to back diplomacy between Washington and Tehran while opening wider discussions on regional security.
It has already convened three times — in Riyadh on 20 March, Islamabad on 29 March, and Antalya on 17 April. During these meetings, it has sought to reinforce the US-Iran negotiating track, contain escalation, and lay the groundwork for ending the conflict.
On Sunday, during his meeting with the foreign ministers of the four countries, President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi described them as “key pillars of regional security and stability”. He added that the consultative mechanism could evolve into a capable and effective institutional framework and one able to deliver comprehensive and sustainable solutions to the region’s crises.
Al-Sisi welcomed the US-Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed last week, praising Pakistan’s effective role in bridging gaps in order to secure the deal. He reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to working with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Turkey, and other Arab and regional partners to support the MoU’s implementation and ensure the success of the 60-day negotiation process.
The foreign ministers of the four countries called on the US and Iran to work quickly towards a “permanent” and “verifiable” resolution of their differences in the negotiations.
In their final statement, they described the MoU as a constructive step towards de-escalation and ending a conflict that posed significant risks to regional security and stability, as well as to international maritime routes, global supply chains, and international trade.
While the MoU was immediately put into effect, a 60-day negotiating period starts this week towards a comprehensive final settlement.
The statement added that particular emphasis was placed on the importance of achieving a swift and successful conclusion to the subsequent phase of negotiations that aims to reach a lasting, verifiable, and mutually acceptable solution to the remaining issues.
A diplomat who asked for anonymity explained that the four countries are also working to pursue a different diplomatic track, one that does not undermine Tehran’s regional standing or push it into unwanted concessions, particularly on its nuclear file.
At the same time, they are seeking to contain Iran’s influence in the region, creating a consultative mechanism that could prove useful in addressing other pressing regional issues, he said.
Various political commentators pointed to some of the challenges that are expected to face the negotiations.
Journalist Galal Aref praised the mediation efforts as significant and influential but stressed they would not have ended the war unless both sides had accepted that military confrontation was futile and that the political track was the only alternative.
He warned, however, that several parties still oppose this path, chief among them Israel, which would try to obstruct efforts to end the conflict and keep the flames of war burning, he said.
The quadrilateral initiative is expected to take place in parallel with the US-Iranian negotiations. This week’s Cairo meeting was attended by Pakistani, Saudi Arabian, and Turkish foreign ministers Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, and Hakan Fidan, respectively, in the presence of Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.
Meanwhile, the indirect US-Iranian negotiations kicked off in a Swiss resort on Sunday with the aim of reaching a lasting deal within 60 days.
Akram Al-Kassas, a columnist, noted another challenge before the negotiations: the Israeli-Hizbullah confrontations in south Lebanon that are likely to last and present an obstacle to an American-Iranian agreement.
While Iran wants to keep the fate of Hizbullah to the last phases of negotiations, he explained, some analysts expect that this will have to be decided in an early phase because the Lebanese people will not accept their interests being left in the hands of the Iranians in the negotiations with the US.
Sunday’s meeting followed a series of bilateral and trilateral meetings in Cairo. On Saturday, Abdelatty held talks with his Saudi and Turkish counterparts and with Massad Boulos, senior adviser to the US president for Arab and African affairs.
In addition to the MoU, the talks covered the situation in Gaza, the crisis in Sudan, and developments in Libya, with participants highlighting the need to support efforts to preserve Libya’s unity, respect its sovereignty, and unify the country’s state institutions.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 25 June, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.
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