Pakistan is stabbing America in the back. While masquerading as a neutral “mediator” in the U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict and hosting the ceasefire talks that shattered the April 8, 2026 agreement, Islamabad has been quietly cutting sordid side deals with Tehran. These pacts secure safe passage for its energy imports and, according to multiple reports, provided shelter for Iranian military aircraft at Nur Khan Airbase. In doing so, Pakistan is tightening the mullahs’ grip on the Strait of Hormuz and once again exposing the strategic duplicity that defines its foreign policy: milking Washington for military aid, diplomatic legitimacy, and economic favors while accommodating America’s adversaries behind closed doors.

Behind the scenes, Pakistani negotiators struck a bargain with Tehran to guarantee safe transit for its vessels and critical Qatari liquefied natural gas cargoes through the Strait of Hormuz under Iran’s newly imposed “regulated access” extortion racket. This cynical mechanism lets the Ayatollah regime charge bitcoin fees to survive the current naval blockade.

From a policy standpoint, Islamabad is openly conceding Iranian control over one of the world’s most vital maritime chokepoints. Rather than resisting Tehran’s weaponization of global energy routes, Pakistan has legitimized it. The arrangement handed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) greater leverage, conferred fresh economic and political legitimacy on Iran’s pressure campaign, and strengthened Tehran’s ability to manipulate the artery through which roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)