Pakistan, which brought the US and Iran into the negotiating process, is gaining exceptional diplomatic importance, says Wall Street Journal

NEW YORK (The Thursday Times) — According to the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal, Pakistan, which has brought the United States and Iran to the negotiating table, is gaining exceptional diplomatic importance globally. At the start of President Trump's second term, Pakistan created new room for itself in Washington, in which Field Marshal Asim Munir played a key role. Pakistan can now not only influence the regional balance, but is also establishing itself as a careful and effective bridge between Washington, Tehran, Riyadh and Ankara.

Pakistan, once viewed by Washington with distrust and isolation over allegations that it sheltered Osama bin Laden, today appears to be gaining exceptional importance in efforts to bring the United States and Iran to the negotiating table. According to a detailed report in The Wall Street Journal, Islamabad is not only offering to host possible peace talks but has also played an active role behind the scenes in passing American peace proposals to Tehran.

According to the report, US President Donald Trump this week highlighted Pakistan's offer on the social media site Truth Social, while Steve Witkoff, the US special envoy for the Middle East, said Pakistani officials had helped deliver America's 15-point peace plan to Iran. According to Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, the message was conveyed to Tehran through a back channel facilitated by Pakistan.

The Wall Street Journal wrote that the development is remarkable in that this same Pakistan came under heavy criticism during President Trump's first term, when Trump described it as a country that had given the United States nothing but "lies and deceit". But matters have now reached the point where Islamabad is being discussed as a possible peace mediator.

According to the report, Pakistan's rise is not a coincidence but a diplomatic and strategic process pursued as a matter of policy. Influential circles in Pakistan have created new room for the country in the United States by building closeness with President Trump, gaining access to his inner political and economic circles, and advancing business in areas such as cryptocurrency and critical minerals.

According to the Wall Street Journal, political analysts also point to the role of Pakistan's Chief of Defence Forces, Field Marshal Asim Munir, in the whole process. Earlier this year, he also presided over the signing stage of a crypto deal between a firm linked to Steve Witkoff and the government of Pakistan. President Trump has also described him as his favourite field marshal.

A major reason for Pakistan's importance is also its geographical and diplomatic relationship with Iran. Sharing a common border with Iran, Pakistan is regarded as a friendly country by Tehran. According to Ishaq Dar, Iran also allowed 20 Pakistan-flagged ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, even as severe pressure and uncertainty have persisted over this waterway for commercial shipping.

Although Iran has rejected the American 15-point peace plan and given its own five-point response, Pakistan has indicated that a preliminary summit of mediating countries is to be held in Islamabad, with the aim of reducing tensions and laying the foundation for a broader diplomatic process.

According to the Wall Street Journal, whether or not these efforts turn immediately into formal peace talks, Pakistan has already secured an important diplomatic success. Husain Haqqani, Pakistan's former ambassador to the United States, told the newspaper that from Pakistan's point of view the situation is beneficial in any case. In his words, whether or not there is an agreement, Pakistan has at least achieved this: the perception of its isolation is fading, and it now appears at the centre of the stage.

There are also concrete domestic and external reasons for Pakistan's desire to see this crisis end. According to the Wall Street Journal, after the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader, Khamenei, in a US and Israeli operation, fierce anti-American protests were seen in Pakistan, which has a large Shia population. Protests in several cities, including Karachi, further highlighted this delicate balance.

The newspaper also writes that in September Pakistan signed a NATO-style mutual defence agreement with Saudi Arabia. According to Hussain Haqqani, playing a mediating role is also a practical course for Pakistan, so that it does not immediately face Saudi pressure to join the Saudi position directly in any possible regional confrontation.

However, the mediating role is not without risks. Imran Ali, a former Pakistani ambassador, told the Wall Street Journal that Pakistan has had to maintain an extremely difficult diplomatic balance between Iran and Saudi Arabia. According to him, Islamabad has to make a complex diplomatic manoeuvre in which leaning towards one side could cause damage on the other.

According to the report, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry and the military did not respond to the newspaper's request for comment on the matter, while the White House also did not state any official position.

In its report, the Wall Street Journal also reviewed the historical nature of relations between the United States and Pakistan. During the Cold War and the war on terror, the United States regarded Pakistan as an important ally. The CIA kept in close contact with Pakistan's military and intelligence agencies in order to reach the al-Qaeda figures responsible for the 9/11 attacks, including Osama bin Laden. But when, in 2011, Osama bin Laden was found living in a Pakistani city and was killed in a covert US operation, opinion of Pakistan in Washington turned sharply negative.

Even the Biden administration, as late as 2024, accused Pakistan of seeking to acquire a missile system capable of reaching the United States. Now, however, relations between the two countries appear to be being rebuilt afresh.

According to the report, the change began early in President Trump's second term, when the Pentagon sent Islamabad a message asking it to track down and hand over the militant responsible for the 2021 Kabul airport bombing. Pakistan complied with the demand, and last March Trump praised Pakistan in his address to Congress.

Only a few weeks later, Islamabad also credited the United States with the ceasefire in a brief but sensitive conflict with India, although New Delhi does not agree. According to the Wall Street Journal, some observers regard Pakistan's nomination of President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize as an important diplomatic signal as well, particularly at a time when Trump had long wanted to establish himself as a global peacemaker.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Pakistani officials also stepped up contacts with the Trump administration and with people linked to the president's family, while political analysts believe Field Marshal Asim Munir also played an important role behind these contacts.

According to the newspaper, Pakistan twice gave a special reception to the Trump family's crypto venture, "World Liberty Financial". In January, Field Marshal Asim Munir chaired an important meeting in Islamabad with Zach Witkoff, chief executive of World Liberty and the son of Steve Witkoff. On the same occasion, an agreement was signed with Pakistan's Ministry of Finance under which the possibilities of using stablecoins in Pakistan were to be examined. According to the newspaper, this was the first agreement of its kind with a foreign state.