Pakistan Keeps the Peace Alive
On May 16, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi landed in Tehran for his second visit to Iran in two months. He met Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf,...
On May 16, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi landed in Tehran for his second visit to Iran in two months. He met Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in a 90-minute meeting. No cameras. No press conference. Just quiet, patient diplomacy, exactly the kind Pakistan has been delivering since this crisis began. That is Pakistan’s signature in this conflict: steady, behind-the-scenes engagement when everyone else has run out of ideas.
The conflict started on February 28, 2026, as the U.S. and Israel attacked Tehran. Iran responded by closing the Strait of Hormuz, the vital passage used daily by one-fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas. Global energy markets were rattled. People waited for disaster. The world desperately needed an intervention. Pakistan stepped in.
The Pakistani capital of Islamabad received a 15-point US proposal to Tehran in March. Instead, it submitted a 5-point peace proposal of its own requiring an immediate halt of hostilities and humanitarian access. Since both countries did not want to communicate directly, Pakistan became the channel through which their respective communications would pass. And since a ceasefire was not possible through direct negotiations, Pakistan made it possible with mediation. On April 8, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif declared that the Americans and Iranians reached an understanding to hold a two-week-long truce, brokered by Pakistan. No one had accomplished this feat in 47 years. That ceasefire alone was historic.
In the next three days, from April 11-12, occurred the Islamabad Talks. A delegation of 300 Americans headed by Vice President JD Vance faced off with an Iranian team of 70 members, led by Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf. Chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, the talks lasted 21 hours over three sessions. While it did not result in any agreement, the Islamabad Talks resulted in what was just as momentous – the first direct, high-level, face-to-face meetings between the Americans and Iranians since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
No country had managed that in 47 years. Pakistan did it in six weeks. The talks stalled after that. Trump’s unilateral claims on social media about Iran agreeing to terms that had not been finalised damaged trust. Iran publicly rejected those claims. The ceasefire came under strain. US Senator Lindsey Graham questioned Pakistan’s role after reports emerged that Iranian aircraft had parked at PAF Base Nur Khan. Pakistan responded clearly: both sides had used Pakistani facilities as part of ceasefire logistics, and Islamabad maintained full neutrality. President Trump himself backed Pakistan. “No, they’re great,” Trump told reporters when asked if the US should reconsider. “I think the Pakistanis have been great.”
Pakistan did not flinch. It kept working.
On May 4, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to keep talks alive. On the same day, Pakistan facilitated the handover of 22 crew members from the captured Iranian container ship MV Touska, transferring them from US custody to Iran. Islamabad called it a confidence-building measure. That is what a real mediator does, it finds small wins to keep the bigger process breathing.
It was recently stated by the Council on Foreign Relations that Pakistan has become an indispensable mediator in this ongoing conflict. Iranian president Pezeshkian has hailed the role played by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir through their active diplomacy which led to ceasefire stability. That praise comes from the country Pakistan is helping.
Critics argue the talks have stalled. They have. But the ceasefire holds. Channels remain open. Iran continues to convey its proposals through Pakistan. The US continues to rely on Islamabad to carry its messages to Tehran. No second round of formal talks has started yet, but Pakistan has prevented a collapse.
That matters enormously. A collapse of the ceasefire risks a wider regional war, a prolonged Hormuz blockade, and a global energy crisis that hurts developing countries the most, including Pakistan itself.
Pakistan mediates despite all this. It does so without asking for territory, without seeking bases, and without demanding public credit. It seeks peace because peace is in the interest of the region, and Pakistan sits at the heart of that region.
Naqvi’s Tehran visit this weekend shows that Pakistan has not walked away. It shows up, keeps the lines open, and finds a way forward. In a world where great powers have failed for decades to bridge the US-Iran divide, Pakistan is the country that is actually trying.
That deserves recognition. More importantly, it deserves continued support.
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