At the global level, on one hand, the visit of the Iranian Foreign Minister to Pakistan is being given heightened significance, while on the other hand, the shooting that took place during the US President’s dinner is under intense discussion. The encouraging aspect is that President Trump has clarified that the shooting has no linkage with the Iran war, while the attacker, Cole Tomas Allen, aged 31, is said to be a resident of the United States.
The Pakistani leadership, particularly Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, while expressing serious concern over the incident of firing on President Trump, also expressed relief and satisfaction that President Trump and the First Lady remained safe. Otherwise, this incident could have proved to be a precursor to a major geopolitical disaster for which the world is not prepared.
On the other hand, in global financial circles, it is also being discussed that the United States, further tightening pressure on Iran, has frozen cryptocurrency assets worth approximately 344 million dollars. According to the US Treasury Department, this step has been taken to curb Iran’s energy-derived income and its financial network, so that in wartime conditions the supply of oil and financial resources can be disrupted, rendering Iran financially paralyzed. Although due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the global market is already facing an uncertain and volatile situation, and the energy supply chain is under severe strain.
Furthermore, during the tensions in the Middle East, strong and assertive statements have also emerged regarding the Strait of Hormuz. The President of the European Council, António Costa, has made it clear that the Strait of Hormuz should be immediately opened “without any restrictions and without tolling,” because its closure can create grave risks not only for global trade but also for energy supply. If this situation continues, the global economy may move towards a fresh crisis cycle.
Similarly, activities in the field of war diplomacy have also increased to an extraordinary level. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, with his small delegation, arrived in Islamabad, where important meetings were held with the Pakistani leadership. This development indicates that back-channel diplomacy spearheaded by Pakistan is consistently continuing. Referring to diplomatic sources regarding Pakistan, the international media says that although the expected talks could not materialize, the situation is still in a phase of temporary hibernation because the trust deficit continues between Iran and the United States. At the same time, reports have also emerged that Pakistan believes that the path towards meaningful negotiations will soon emerge.
Trump said that Iran “can call us anytime they want” and insisted that if Tehran is interested in talks, it simply needs to reach out directly without waiting for formal diplomatic channels. He added that the United States is open to communication, but the initiative for resuming negotiations must come from Iran itself.
Here the question may also arise: why did Abbas Araghchi need to visit Pakistan? In a presumably trilateral visit, when his Foreign Office had already made a statement that he would not attend the meeting with the US team, the answer is that sometimes very harsh and uncompromising statements come from US President Donald Trump outside the realm of diplomatic norms, due to which Pakistan finds it an uphill task to dilute the intensity of such statements and has to perform this duty by presenting these harsh statements to Iran in context, so that a path is gradually paved for resolving issues between the two countries and a way can be seen to bring the world out of the economic suffering as a consequence of the Iran war.
It is a matter of pride for Pakistan that through its role of mediation in the US-Iran war, Pakistan’s foreign policy has gained a new strategic dimension, and traditional and military diplomacy has played a fantastic role. In particular, Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir, who has previously headed both Military Intelligence and ISI, and whose past and present connections with the ranks and files of Iranian leadership on both the military as well as political side have played a role in taking this diplomacy to new heights of influence, which cannot be forgotten. It can be hoped that Pakistan will continue its efforts with the same diligence.
During this diplomatic activity, security concerns in the region have also increased, where on one hand the United States has announced the cancellation of concessional permits related to the supply of Russian oil, while any kind of relaxation regarding Iranian oil supply has been declared “impossible.” Along with this, the US has also imposed sanctions on a large refinery based in China and approximately 40 shipping companies and tankers accused of being involved in the transportation of Iranian oil. Furthermore, by increasing military presence, three aircraft carriers have been deployed in the region, which is being considered the first major force projection move of this kind since the 2003 Iraq war.
The situation in the region became further complicated when two drone attacks were reported in the northern border areas of Kuwait, which were launched from Iraq. Although there was no loss of life in these attacks, infrastructure was damaged, and the Iraqi government has immediately started an urgent investigation.
Meanwhile, on the Israeli front as well, an increase in tension has been observed, where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Hezbollah of attempting to sabotage any possible “historic peace agreement” with Lebanon, which has further complicated and strained the prospects of peace in the region.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza remains extremely severe, where at least twelve Palestinians have been martyred in recent Israeli attacks, including six police officers. According to medical sources, the lack of basic facilities in the area and continuous bombardment have made the situation critically fragile, and despite concerns of the international community, no improvement is visible on the ground.
The latest development is that the Iranian Foreign Minister will travel to Russia after his visit to Oman.
Earlier, it was highly likely that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would arrive in Pakistan, and at that time the Iranian delegation would also reach Pakistan, but it appears that Donald Trump and his team were displeased that their team arrived on Sunday morning, and a two-day wait was disliked by Trump and his team, because, being the world’s greatest power, the United States also holds the arrogance that why should they wait for a delegation from a country like Iran for two days. Perhaps this is why Donald Trump, giving this justification, canceled the departure of his team.
Thus, apparently Iran missed the opportunity for negotiations with the US delegation under Pakistan’s mediation; however, if the Iranian delegation had stayed according to Pakistan’s advice and through Pakistan’s efforts a meeting between the Iran-US delegations had taken place, many paths could have been smoothened and de-escalated. Nevertheless, back-channel diplomacy is ongoing, and it can be expected that in the coming days a Iran-US meeting will certainly take place, and especially when the world is suffering from economic distress and hardship, this meeting is extremely important because if this conflict continues, with time this pain and suffering will continue to increase.
Translated by M.M. News Editorial Team
