Pakistan PM commits to facilitate 'durable peace' between Iran-US, Pezeshkian says no to forced negotiations

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday (Apr 25) assured Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian that Islamabad “would continue its sincere and honest endeavors to promote regional peace and security." In a phone call with the Iranian president, the Pakistani PM said that he “appreciated” Iran’s continued engagement, including the high-level delegation to Islamabad led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi aimed at ending the war. In a post on X, Sharif said that Pakistan will continue to serve as an “honest and sincere facilitator” and will work tirelessly to advance “durable peace and lasting stability in the region.” The Iranian delegation left Islamabad on Saturday and arrived in Muscat, Oman, for further regional talks. The development comes after US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner's Islamabad trip was cancelled by US President Donald Trump.

Also Read: 'I hear yes': Trump's BIG hint about China's role in pressuring Iran for ceasefire with US

What Trump said?

While cancelling the trip, Trump said, “We’re not going to spend 15 hours in airplanes all the time going back and forth to be giving a document that was not good enough, and so we’ll deal by telephone, and they can call us anytime they want." He also said that Iran “offered a lot but not enough” withing minutes after the cancellation. “They gave us a paper that should have been better, and interestingly, immediately, when I canceled it, within 10 minutes, we got a new paper that was much better,” Trump told reporters outside Air Force One. He had earlier blamed "infighting” among Iranian leaders for derailing a potential second round of negotiations. Asked separately whether the cancelation meant a return to hostilities, Trump said: “No, it doesn't mean that. We haven't thought about it yet.”

What Iran said?

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian told Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif that Tehran will not enter into forced negotiations, under pressure threats, or siege. According to the IRNA news agency, Pezeshkian explained the obstacles hindering the diplomatic process. He emphasised that, as long as the US’s hostile actions and operational pressures persist, the “reconstruction of trust and progress on the path of dialogue would face significant difficulty”. Meanwhile, Araghchi described his Pakistan trip as "very fruitful" but signalled scepticism over Washington's intentions. "Have yet to see if the US is truly serious about diplomacy," he said. Iran had earlier said that they would return to talks if the naval blockade of Strait of Hormuz is removed.

(Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, the US, Gulf nations and non-state actors like Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis, Islamic State, and others. Claims and counterclaims, disinformation and misinformation are being made online and offline. Given this context, WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.)