Pakistan has emerged as the most important diplomatic address on earth this week, with the White House confirming that a second round of US-Iran talks is being considered and Islamabad is the likely venue.
The diplomatic groundwork has been quietly but methodically laid. Iran’s Foreign Minister met Pakistan’s military chief in Tehran in a significant signal of how deeply embedded Rawalpindi has become in the back-channel negotiations, while Pakistan’s Prime Minister simultaneously travelled to Saudi Arabia to push for a wider diplomatic framework that could hold a deal together once one is reached.
Trump himself said on Fox News that the Iran conflict is very close to over and pointed to Pakistan as a key facilitator, while the White House told reporters it feels good about the prospects of a deal. The UN Secretary General called a second round of talks highly probable.
The stakes could not be higher. The Iran war has sent oil above $90 a barrel, triggered the Strait of Hormuz blockade and rattled every major economy on earth. A ceasefire that holds could reverse much of that damage almost overnight.
Pakistan did not ask for this role. It earned it.
Sources: CNN · Al Jazeera · AFP · Euronews
