Pakistan Seeks to Mediate Peace Talks With US, Iran in Islamabad
Field Marshal Asim Munir spoke with Trump on Monday, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private
Pakistan is making a push to mediate talks to end the US-Israeli war against Iran, with its powerful army chief holding calls with President Donald Trump to find a resolution to the fighting, people familiar with the matter said.
Field Marshal Asim Munir spoke with Trump on Monday, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private. Pakistan is positioning Islamabad as a location for the talks, one of the people said. Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff is playing a key role in the talks, the person said.
Trump said Monday he’d postpone strikes against Iran’s energy infrastructure following “productive conversations” with the Islamic Republic. Iranian officials have so far denied any negotiations are taking place. CBS News reported, citing a senior unnamed Iranian foreign ministry official, that Iranian officials were reviewing US messages sent through mediators.
Tahir Andrabi, spokesman for Pakistan’s Foreign Office, didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Pakistan is leveraging close ties fostered with Trump together with its longstanding bonds with neighbor Iran and other key players such as Saudi Arabia. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday, pledging solidarity with Iran and calling for de-escalation in the fighting.
“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 in the region,” Sharif said in a post on X.
The Financial Times reported that Munir spoke with Trump on Sunday. Axios reported that mediating countries were trying to convene a meeting in Islamabad with Witkoff, Jared Kushner and possibly US Vice President JD Vance, according to an unidentified Israeli official.
Pakistan has stepped up its diplomatic engagement in the Gulf region as fighting escalated, triggering an energy crisis that’s causing major gas shortages in South Asia. The Strait of Hormuz, which carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas, has been virtually shut since the fighting began. Pakistan imports almost all of its crude oil, refined petroleum products and LNG from Gulf nations.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar attended a joint meeting with counterparts from Arab and Muslim countries in Riyadh last week to discuss the ongoing conflict. Pakistan tried hard to ensure the joint statement didn’t contribute to an escalation in the rhetoric between Iran and its Gulf neighbors, a person familiar with the matter said, following the Islamic Republic’s retaliatory airstrikes against countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Munir has also held talks several times with Saudi Arabia about the conflict. He and Sharif traveled to Jeddah on March 12 to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, one day after Sharif spoke with Iran’s president. Munir also met with the Saudi defense minister earlier in March.
Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan signed a defense pact in September last year, which states that any aggression against either country would be considered aggression against both.
Pakistan is also engulfed in its own fighting with neighboring Afghanistan, with cross-border attacks that have intensified in recent weeks, but are currently paused.