TT Staff Reporter

Saudi Arabia said a Pakistani military force, including fighter and support aircraft, has arrived at King Abdulaziz Air Base under a bilateral defence pact, a deployment that underscores expanding security coordination between the two countries.

With JD Vance, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner now in Islamabad, Pakistan has become the venue for a diplomatic push that could decide whether a fragile U.S.-Iran ceasefire survives or collapses.

While New Delhi continues to sell Pakistan internally as a terrorist state, Islamabad is increasingly positioning itself as a mediator, a bridge-builder and a country whose real strategic mission is peace.

Seven foreign leaders phoned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif within 24 hours, publicly praising Pakistan’s role in securing the U.S.-Iran ceasefire and signalling a rare burst of direct diplomatic recognition for Islamabad.

Senior Indian Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has said India should welcome, not resent, Pakistan’s role in helping secure a US–Iran ceasefire, arguing that peace in the region is not a zero-sum outcome.