Pakistan has been invited to take part in Iran-US talks focused on easing tensions between Tehran and Washington, the Foreign Office said on Tuesday.
Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andarabi, while speaking to Geo News, confirmed Pakistan’s invitation to the negotiations, which are scheduled to take place in Istanbul later this week.
According to diplomatic sources, the Iran-US talks are being held as part of backchannel diplomatic efforts involving multiple regional stakeholders.
Pakistan and Turkiye are said to have played a role in facilitating these behind-the-scenes engagements that helped pave the way for the dialogue, the sources said.
Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar is likely to represent Pakistan at de-escalation talks between Tehran and Washington, they said.
According to a Reuters report, some of the other countries invited to the talks at the foreign ministers’ level included Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The person said the format of the meetings remained unclear, but that the “main meeting” would take place on Friday and that it was important to start dialogue between the parties to avoid further escalation.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian confirmed on Tuesday that he had ordered the start of nuclear talks with the United States, after his counterpart Donald Trump threatened “bad things” if no deal was reached.
“In light of requests from friendly governments in the region to respond to the proposal by the President of the United States for negotiations….. I have instructed my Minister of Foreign Affairs, provided that a suitable environment exists — one free from threats and unreasonable expectations — to pursue fair and equitable negotiations,” Pezeshkian said in a post on X.
