In early 2026, the Iran–Israel war began, which was one of the most destabilizing wars in West Asia in recent decades. In the wake of coordinated strikes that resulted in the deaths of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior commanders, the war rapidly turned into a regional crisis. Iran responded by firing missiles and drones at Israel and U.S.-backed military bases in the Gulf, and Hezbollah launched a second assault from Lebanon. Israel retaliated with ground operations and a massive increase in targeted bombing, with the bombing of a girls’ school in Minab being just one example of civilian deaths that resulted. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz further affected energy supplies around the world, causing shock waves that rolled across the international energy markets.

Pakistan Being a Mediator

In this chaos, Pakistan came out as an unexpected but important peace broker. Islamabad was pivotal in bringing about ceasefires and negotiations owing to its unique geopolitical location, its relations with Iran and Gulf countries, and its historic linkages with Washington. Pakistan’s mediation was not only a humanitarian gesture, but it was also a strategic move to ensure economic and security interests are protected and to help maintain regional peace.

The unique geopolitical position of Pakistan enables it to mediate. Unlike the Gulf states, which have bases for the U.S. military, Pakistan has cooperative relations with both Iran and the U.S. without direct military involvement. It shares a 909-kilometer border with Iran, so stability in Tehran is of direct interest to it. Additionally, Pakistan has a history with the Muslim-majority countries and the Western countries, which makes it a trusted neutral mediator.

This enabled Islamabad to conduct backchannel negotiations and offer confidence-building initiatives when few other states could claim neutrality. Similarly, Pakistan’s efforts were backed by China and Qatar, which understood the possibilities of Pakistan to........

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