As tension is once again brewing up in the Gulf sparking debate about threats to temporary ceasefire, Pakistan has intensified its mediation efforts to save the peace process.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi reached Tehran on Saturday carrying, what Iranian sources say, an important message of Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir for Iranian Supreme Leader Mujtaba Khamanei. The visit assumes special significance as Naqvi had a meeting with his Iranian counterpart on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) conference in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan and received instructions from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif before his departure to Tehran.
Recent ceasefire violations by two sides constitute a grave threat to regional peace and global economy, complicating mediation efforts of Pakistan. At present, their limited provocative actions have prevented resumption of full-scale war but the situation can get out of control any time due to miscalculation and regional factors. In the latest escalation, the US forces struck Iran’s coastal radar sites on Saturday after shooting down drones launched by Iran toward the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted US bases in the region with missiles in retaliation for US strikes and fired on four tankers attempting to cross the strait without its permission. Kuwaiti air defences were intercepting missile and drone attacks of undisclosed origin, state media reported, while in Bahrain sirens sounded and residents were urged to seek shelter. As has been widely reported by world media, Israeli aggression in Lebanon has become one of the major hurdles in way of de-escalation as the Jewish state is pushing ahead its agenda of bombing the country and occupying its areas despite worldwide condemnation. There were recent reports that President Donald Trump had a heated exchange with Israeli Prime Minister over continued attacks in Lebanon but this had no positive impact on the ground situation.
In a related development, Lebanese Armed Forces Commander Gen. Rodolphe Haykal has been invited to Pakistan by the CDF for consultations on the ongoing situation. Pakistan has been sensitising the US President that Israeli military action in Lebanon must come to an end to help promote the peace process. In this backdrop, the visit of Interior Minister to Tehran is being viewed as part of Pakistan’s efforts to prevent the collapse of a ceasefire arrangement that Islamabad helped broker earlier this year and to create space for resumption of meaningful negotiations between Washington and Tehran. The ceasefire, reached in April after weeks of intense fighting involving Iran, the US and Israel, remains formally in place but has been repeatedly tested by military incidents in and around the Gulf region. At centre of the deadlock are disagreements over Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, its enrichment programme, its frozen assets, the future of sanctions, reopening of Strait of Hormuz and regional security issues. While US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that negotiations remain active and that progress is being made towards a deal, Iranian officials have struck a far more cautious tone. Tehran is insisting that the United States must release its frozen assets as part of confidence-building measures yet Washington is using the issue as a pressure tactic to squeeze concessions from Iran.
In a twist of events, reports emanating from Washington say the United States is contemplating a proposal to make Iranian assets available to Gulf allies to support rebuilding and repairs for future damage caused by Iran. Given intricacies of the situation, the strategy adopted both by the United States and Iran – no war, no peace – does not seem to be sustainable. They should climb down from their idealist positions, acknowledge ground realities and respond coolly to ‘new proposals’ reportedly floated by Pakistan.
