Pakistan, which is walking a tightrope amid the ongoing war between allies in the Middle East, is reportedly trying to position itself as the lead mediator to broker peace between Iran and its foes, the United States and Israel. Islamabad is using its military strongman’s ties to Tehran and its warm relationship with US President Donald Trump, according to a report by the Financial Times.
So far, Islamabad has pursued cautious diplomacy by condemning the strikes on Iran but simultaneously urging for de-escalation. However, Pakistan has now offered Islamabad as a possible venue for talks between senior figures from the Trump administration and Iran as early as this week, the publication reported, quoting sources familiar with the development.
The report said Pakistan’s army chief, Asim Munir, spoke to US President Donald Trump on Sunday, while Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif held talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday. The call between Sharif and Pezeshkian coincided with Trump’s announcement of delaying his threat to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants.
US and Iran’s Stand
The American commander-in-chief claimed he decided to pause his threat after “very good and productive” conversations with Tehran to end the war, a claim Iran has denied. Tehranhowever, accepted that some regional states were involved in mediation efforts.
“Over the past few days, messages were received via certain friendly states conveying the US request for negotiations to end the war. Appropriate responses were given [to those initiatives] in accordance with the country’s fundamental positions,” Esmaeil Baqaei, the foreign ministry’s spokesperson, told state media IRNA.
The spokesperson insisted that there had been no changes to Iran’s positions regarding the situation at the Strait of Hormuz or Tehran’s conditions for ending the war.
MB Ghalibaf, speaker of Iran’s Parliament, also said that no negotiations have been held with the US.
“Fakenews is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped,” he said.
Pakistan’s Efforts
Per the Financial Times report, senior Pakistani officials were back-channelling talks between Tehran and Team Trump‘s envoys Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Pakistan’s PM Sharif has also reportedly spoken to Pezeshkian multiple times since the war started.
“While sharing with the Iranian president the diplomatic outreach efforts of Pakistan’s leadership, the prime minister assured the Iranian leadership that Pakistan would continue to play a constructive role in facilitating peace,” Pakistan said in a readout of their conversation on Monday.
Pakistan’s foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, has reportedly told Arab counterparts at a meeting in Riyadh last week that Islamabad was mediating between the US and Iran but did not provide details. A diplomat told the publication that Pakistan was leading mediation efforts.
Pakistan, which does not host any American bases, is one of the few US allies in the neighbourhood that has been spared Tehran’s missiles and drones. That fact has helped shore it up as a neutral arbiter between Iran and the US. It also has the second-largest Shia Muslim population after Iran, and it also maintains close relations with Gulf states, including a mutual defence pact signed last year with Saudi Arabia.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khameneiname-checked Pakistan in a written message published in Iranian media to mark the start of the Iranian new year last week, saying he had a special feeling towards the people of Pakistan.
All Players In The Truce Talks
It remains unclear if Pakistan’s mediation push and Trump’s post on his Truth Social social media platform about delaying his threat to bomb Iran’s power grid were related. But a European official told news agency Reuters that while there had been no direct negotiations between the US and Iran, Egypt, Pakistan and Gulf states were relaying messages.
Turkey, which was involved in mediation efforts between the warring nations before the war, has also reportedly been talking to Iranian officials and Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in an attempt to secure a brief ceasefire and open space for negotiations.
Pakistan’s foreign minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar also held talks with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan on Monday, while Egypt’s foreign minister Badr Abdelatty spoke to his Iranian and Pakistani counterparts and Witkoff and Qatar’s foreign minister on Sunday, the Financial Times report said.
Team Trump’s Reaction
The White House declined to elaborate on the Trump negotiations. “These are sensitive diplomatic discussions and the United States will not negotiate through the news media,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told IANS when asked about Pakistan’s role in the conflict and peace efforts.
Her remarks came amid media reports that Pakistan is carrying out back-channel diplomacy to de-escalate tensions between Washington and Tehran after weeks of conflict.
‘Prospects Of Truce Low’
Analysts and diplomats have cautioned against the prospect of the success of any mediations as the war stretches into its fourth week. People briefed on the matter told the Financial Times that diplomatic efforts involved very early-stage messaging, rather than a formal process.
Talking to the publication, Sanam Vakil at the Chatham House think tank said several countries were “scrambling” to de-escalate the conflict. “I don’t take this as any signal that the war is coming to an end.”
Vakil said Trump could have walked back on his threat because of pressure from the Gulf states. Iran has vowed to respond to any attack on its power plants by targeting vital infrastructure across the region, including energy facilities and water desalination plants.
“It’s positive to play out what a compromise and agreement might look like, but I don’t see a willingness on either side to compromise…I don’t think Trump can walk away from this crisis of his making,” Vakil said.
“And I just don’t see Iran caving… They feel they have the upper hand and the leverage — this is again about their survival and the conditions that will assure their survival,” she added.
Mediation between the US and Iran has typically been facilitated by Oman and Qatar. But reports have claimed that there has been no major momentum behind diplomatic efforts since the US and Israel launched the war two days after a round of talks between the Trump administration and Iranian officials in Geneva.
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