Pakistan conveys Iran peace plan

Pakistan has moved again into the middle of U.S.-Iran diplomacy, carrying a revised Iranian proposal to American officials as talks remained stalled on May 18. Tehran confirmed that its views had been passed through Islamabad, according to reporting by Reuters and other outlets. The message came as Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi held meetings in Tehran and as Islamabad tried to preserve its role as a go-between after a shaky ceasefire. At the same time, Pakistani officials were managing pressure from another front, with Defence Minister Khawaja Asif warning India against any future “misadventure.” ### What did Pakistan actually deliver to Washington? Reuters reported on May 18 that Pakistan had shared with the United States a revised Iranian proposal to end the conflict, citing a Pakistani source. The same source said the proposal was delivered on Sunday night and described the talks as urgent because “both countries keep changing their goalposts.” Tehran also confirmed that its position had been passed to the U.S. side through Islamabad, according to The Hindu and WION, which matched Reuters’ account that Pakistan was acting as the channel after negotiations slowed. Those reports did not publicly detail the full contents of the revised proposal. ### Why is Pakistan in the middle of U.S.-Iran contacts? (msn.com) Pakistan has been trying for weeks to keep a diplomatic channel open between Tehran and Washington, and its role became more visible again as direct progress stalled. NPR reported earlier this month that Pakistan’s foreign ministry said it hoped a U.S.-Iran deal could happen soon, while Reuters and Al Jazeera described Islamabad as a mediator working to stop the ceasefire from collapsing. (thehindu.com) Al Jazeera reported that Naqvi traveled to Tehran and met senior Iranian figures on May 17 as Pakistan tried to revive momentum. Pakistan Today separately reported that Naqvi held nearly 90 minutes of talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, though that account should be read as a local report rather than an official transcript. ### What is Mohsin Naqvi doing in Tehran? (npr.org) Mohsin Naqvi’s trip put a senior Pakistani cabinet minister in Tehran at the same moment Islamabad was relaying Iran’s latest position to Washington. Reports from Pakistani and regional outlets said he met Iranian officials to discuss regional security, bilateral ties and possible steps to restart talks with the United States. (aljazeera.com) The timing mattered because the revised proposal reached U.S. officials while Naqvi was still in Tehran. That sequence suggested Pakistan was trying to keep messages moving even without a new direct negotiating round publicly announced, though that is an inference from the overlap in dates rather than a stated Pakistani government description. (dailytimes.com.pk) ### Why are there questions about Pakistan’s credibility as a mediator? Arab News reported that Pakistan has also been promoting a Saudi defense pact as evidence of its growing regional importance and has said it hopes to help broker a U.S.-Iran peace deal. That placed Islamabad in the position of presenting itself as both a security partner of Riyadh and an intermediary with Tehran. Hindustan Times reported accusations that Pakistan was playing a “dual game,” citing reported troop and jet deployments to Saudi Arabia under that pact. (msn.com) Al Jazeera likewise said Pakistan’s mediation faced limits as Iran-U.S. tensions deepened. Neither report said Tehran had publicly broken with Islamabad, but both pointed to the constraints around Pakistan’s balancing act. (arabnews.com) ### Why is India part of this story at all? Khawaja Asif widened the regional backdrop on May 18 by warning India against any future military move. Pakistan Today reported that Asif invoked last year’s Pahalgam confrontation and said India would face severe consequences for any new action against Pakistan. Dawn and Geo carried similar accounts of the warning. (hindustantimes.com) Those remarks did not directly concern the Iranian proposal, but they showed Islamabad handling parallel security messaging while trying to present itself abroad as a diplomatic intermediary. The next public test will be whether Washington responds to the revised Iranian proposal or whether Pakistani officials announce another round of contacts from Tehran or Islamabad. (msn.com) (pakistantoday.com.pk)