Pakistan is positioning itself as a key mediator to help broker an end to the US-Israel war against Iran, leveraging military and political ties, the Financial Times reports.
Two officials familiar with the discussions said Islamabad has proposed hosting talks as early as this week, potentially involving senior figures from the administration of Donald Trump and Iranian officials.
According to the report, Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir spoke with Trump on Sunday, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday.
The Sharif–Pezeshkian conversation came as Trump said he was delaying his threat to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants, citing “very good and productive” discussions with Tehran aimed at ending the war.
The Financial Times reports, it remains unclear whether Pakistan’s mediation efforts are linked to Trump’s post on his platform Truth Social, which triggered a sharp fall in oil prices.
The White House declined to comment further, saying the discussions were sensitive and would not be conducted through the media.
Other regional players are also engaged. Turkey has been in contact with Iranian officials and Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff to explore a ceasefire and open space for negotiations.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held talks with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan on Monday. Meanwhile, Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty also spoke with counterparts in Iran and Pakistan, as well as Witkoff and Qatar’s foreign minister, the report said.
Iran’s foreign ministry denied there had been any direct negotiations with the US since the start of the war, but said that some regional states were involved in mediation efforts.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said, “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.”
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, according to IRNA.
