The Saudi finance minister was in Islamabad on Saturday in a show of "economic support", a source familiar with the matter told AFP, days after Pakistan said it would return billions in loans to Riyadh's ally-turned-rival the UAE.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met US Vice President JD Vance in Islamabad on Saturday, the former's office said, adding that peace talks to end the Middle East war had "commenced".

US Vice President JD Vance landed at an airbase near Pakistan's capital on Saturday ahead of negotiations with Iran aimed at ending the war in the Middle East.

The Pakistan Navy rescued 18 crew members, including foreign nationals, of a merchant vessel in the North Arabian Sea after receiving a distress call, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Friday.

A delegation of top Iranian officials has arrived in Islamabad ahead of ceasefire talks with the United States in the Pakistani capital, Iranian state television reported Friday.

The long-term fallout of the war in Iran is only beginning to take shape, but this much is clear: The conflict has left the Middle East unsettled, alliances strained and the world facing uncertain shifts in the balance of economic and military power.

Saudi Arabia said on Thursday that the attacks carried out in recent weeks by Iran against the kingdom's energy infrastructure killed one person and impacted its oil production capacity.

For the 41-year-old Vance, who has kept a notably low profile during the Middle East conflict, it will be one of the biggest moments of his career.

Pakistan is due to host talks between Iran and the United States in a bid to turn a fragile two-week ceasefire into a lasting end to a war that has roiled global energy markets.