Italian PM begins surprise Gulf tour; Putin, Erdogan urge immediate Mideast ceasefire

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni began a surprise visit to Saudi Arabia on Friday as part of a Gulf tour to boost “national energy security,” a government source said, as the Middle East war rages.

Meloni began her unannounced trip in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, the source said, adding that she was the first leader of a European Union or Nato country to visit the region since the war began on Feb.28.

The source said the far-right premier would meet officials from Saudi Arabia, as well as from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, though it was not immediately clear if she would also visit those two countries.

“The aim is to strengthen relations with these countries and repeat Italy’s support against Iranian attacks,” the source said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East war during a phone call on Friday, the Kremlin said.

Erdogan told ‌Putin that ‌Turkey was maintaining contacts with all parties to stop the Iran war spiralling ​more out of ‌control, Erdogan’s office said. It cited Erdogan as telling Putin that ​Turkey ‌does ‌not approve of the attacks against ‌Iran, nor ‌does it endorse ‌Iran’s retaliation against regional countries.

Putin and Erdogan also discussed "the importance of coordinated measures to comprehensively ensure security in the Black Sea area," Kremlin said, accusing Ukraine of "attempts to target gas transportation infrastructure linking Russia and Turkey."

EX-FM URGES PEACE DEAL: Writing in the US journal Foreign Affairs, Iran’s former foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, said Tehran should make a deal with the United States to end the war by offering to curb its nuclear programme and reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for sanctions relief.