Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said on Friday that Pakistan remains in “daily contact” with Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar, along with its long-time ally China. He made this statement as fears grew that the current confrontation with India could escalate into the worst in twenty years.

Tensions between nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan have been high since Wednesday. On that day, India launched strikes at multiple locations in Pakistan. India said it was responding to a deadly April 22 attack that killed 26 tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir. New Delhi blamed Islamabad for the assault.

Pakistan denied any involvement in the Kashmir attack. In retaliation for the Indian strikes, Pakistan claimed it had shot down five Indian fighter jets. Since then, violence has escalated. Both sides have accused each other of launching repeated drone attacks.

World powers, including the United States and China, have urged both countries to lower tensions. “We speak on a daily basis with our brothers in the Arab Gulf,” Asif said while addressing the National Assembly. “Our foreign minister, who also serves as deputy prime minister, is in daily contact with the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and even China.”

He added that Türkiye, China, and Azerbaijan had “declared open support” for Pakistan. He said the rest of the world had stayed “neutral” in the conflict. Asif said Iran’s foreign minister visited Pakistan this week. During the visit, they “discussed various options” to reduce tensions.

US Vice President JD Vance also reiterated calls for de-escalation on Thursday. “We want this thing to de-escalate as quickly as possible. We can’t control these countries, though,” he said in an interview on Fox News’s “The Story with Martha MacCallum.”

Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir is scheduled to visit Pakistan on Friday. Al-Jubeir visited India on Thursday and met Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. Jaishankar said he “shared India’s perspectives on firmly countering terrorism” with him.

India and Pakistan have had a tense relationship since gaining independence from Britain in 1947. They have fought three wars, two over Kashmir, and have had many clashes since. Both countries claim all of Kashmir but control separate parts of it. They both acquired nuclear weapons in the 1990s.