ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, (AP) – Pakistan’s president discussed the “deteriorating situation” in the Middle East with his Iranian counterpart ahead of his tour of the region, the foreign ministry said Saturday.

President Gen. Pervez Musharraf called Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Friday to inform him of his forthcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria and Jordan, the ministry said in a statement.

Musharraf spoke of the need to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and “shared his deep concern with the Iranian president over the deteriorating situation in the Middle East,” the statement said.

Ahmadinejad welcomed his initiative and supported his efforts, it said.

The statement did not say when Musharraf would leave for the Middle East, but government officials have said he many begin his tour Saturday.

Tehran is under pressure from the U.S. and some of its European allies to give up its nuclear program. Pakistan is a key ally of the United States in its war on terror.