Deforming-Plate Reconstructions Reveal Tectonic Regime Controls on Porphyry Copper Formation in the Arabian-Eurasian Tethyan Belt

The western–central Tethyan belt, capturing the Arabian-Eurasian convergence zone, preserves a complex record of subduction, rifting, and continental collision, yet much of this complexity is simplified or omitted in existing global plate reconstructions. This limits our ability to robustly link tectonic evolution with the timing and setting of magmatic–hydrothermal systems such as porphyry copper deposits. Here, we present a new plate reconstruction model of the Arabian-Eurasian convergence system since the latest Jurassic that incorporates both rigid and deforming plates. Our approach re-evaluates the boundaries between continental and oceanic crust, pre-collision margin geometries, and plate affinities by integrating regional geological, geophysical, and geochronological constraints. This integration results in a revised kinematic history that incorporates previously unresolved plate-boundary configurations and deformation patterns into the reconstruction. The model spans 130 Ma to the present, beginning with the initial Iran–Eurasia collision. A key revision occurs in the eastern and northeastern domain, where the Sistan–Sabzevar system is reconstructed as an oceanic basin that opened through rifting between the Lut block and Eurasia, followed by ridge spreading and the development of double-sided subduction systems, culminating in the initial Iran–Eurasia collision at ~54 Ma. West and southwest of the Lut block, Arabia–Iran convergence involves a Cretaceous phase of rifting along the northern Arabian margin, followed by ophiolite obduction and sustained subduction south of the Lut block, before evolving into a sequence of diachronous continental collision stages, beginning with an initial soft collision at ~42 Ma and followed by three hard collision phases at ~35, ~26, and ~16 Ma. Along the southern margin, the Makran region is reconstructed as a long-lived subduction system linked to a migrating island-arc complex that remains active to the present day. Together, these revisions produce a kinematically consistent reconstruction that better reconciles basin development and regional structural shortening. Building on this revised rigid framework, we implement deforming plate networks to represent the distributed strain associated with rifting and continental collision. Time-dependent stretching factors derived from these meshes allow us to distinguish intervals dominated by extension from those dominated by shortening. Comparison with the spatio-temporal distribution of porphyry Cu mineralisation shows that ~62% of deposits formed during extensional or transtensional regimes, whereas ~38% are associated with compressional or transpressional conditions. These results demonstrate that porphyry systems develop across a broader range of tectonic states than commonly assumed. By explicitly linking plate-boundary evolution with time-dependent lithospheric deformation, this reconstruction provides a more realistic framework for evaluating the tectonic controls on magmatic–hydrothermal systems in convergent margins.