Middle East Monitoring Desk Islamabad by Tazeen Akhtar
As the ceasefire deadline is approaching to its end on 22 April Wednesday, Pakistan has accelerated her efforts to make both parties sit on the table of Islamabad talks for a second time to reach some agreement. But it seems that the sides are not taking interest in the continuation of the process. On 19 April , the whole day passed in convincing the Iranian side but no readiness could be seen while the US side remained busy in throwing threats and ultimatums in the already volatile environment for Islamabad Talks 02.
Islamabad’ s Red Zone has been fortified for the security of the visiting negotiating delegations from 19th April till further orders creating problems for the citizens’ free movement in almost half of the capital city while nothing is clear till the end of the long day of April 19.
The United States is expecting unfairly and miscalculated the surrender of Iran on Nuclear and Hormuz while Iran is strict on America’s naval blockade of Iran’s ports and coastline as unlawful and a breach of the Pakistani-mediated ceasefire. So the 02nd round looks very difficult if not impossible.
A new hurdle in this round is the threat to lives of the Iranian negotiating team in a false flag. President Pezeshkian has expressed this threat in a recent interview conducted the day after his meeting with Pakistan’s Field Marshal in Tehran. Iranian delegation changed their route on return to Tehran after first round after they smelt threat from Israeli side.
There is no specific date shared by the government of Pakistan for the talks as it was not mentioned in the first round as well because Iran was not ready to join the second round while Pakistan was convincing Iran to remain engaged for the sake of peace in the region.
First , DPM/FM Ishaq Dar called his counterpart Araghchi and discussed the matter and later in the night at about 10 PM the PM of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif held a telephonic conversation with President Pezeshkian. Unfortunately , there was no clarity after both high level contacts that Iran is coming or not.
At 06 PM, Irani side shared through her sources that Iran has not yet made any decision to dispatch a negotiating delegation to Islamabad, stressing that no talks will take place as long as the US’ naval blockade remains in effect.
Information indicates that exchanges of messages between Iran and the United States have continued in recent days through a Pakistani intermediary, following the conclusion of the first round of negotiations.
These exchanges of messages are, in effect, a continuation of the same process that unfolded during the initial round of talks—a process that ultimately failed due to the Americans’ excessive demands and ambitions.
Since the end of those negotiations, the Pakistani intermediary has continued to relay messages between the two sides over the recent period.
The Iranian negotiating team has underscored that as long as US President Donald Trump’s declaration regarding a naval blockade of Iran remains in place, there will be no negotiations.
In the meanwhile , DPM/FM Dar called Abbas Araghchi and emphasized the need for continued dialogue and engagement as essential to resolving the current issues as soon as possible for promoting the peace and stability in the region and beyond.
Both leaders agreed to remain in close contact and also concurred on a phone call between H.E. the President of Iran and H.E. the Prime Minister of Pakistan, later the same day.
At 10 PM, Prime Minister Pakistan called President Iran and held a conversation on the participation of his country in the second round. PM shared on X what he said to Pezeshkian,
” I had a warm and constructive conversation with President Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian this evening on the evolving regional situation.I appreciated Iran’s engagement, including its high-level delegation to Islamabad for the historic talks, and recent discussions with Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir in Tehran. I also shared insights from my recent engagements with leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Türkiye. I assured him that, with the support of friends and partners, Pakistan remains fully committed to its role as an honest and sincere facilitator of lasting peace and regional stability.”
President Pezeshkian thanked the Prime Minister and the Field Marshal for Pakistan’s strong commitment to the success of the peace efforts, while affirming that relations between Iran and Pakistan would continue to grow stronger in the days ahead.
In the official text shared by the PM Media office , no information was shared about whether Iran is ready to join the talks? On the other hand , the Irani side said in a statement circulated through their official sources that the US will have to lift the blockade in the Gulf for Iran’s participation in the talks.
What is the readiness of US?
It has not been shared officially for security reasons but information in pieces at different places indicates the arrival of US team in Islamabad. Strict security and lock down around Red Zone is seen in the same scene. Trump’s side shared on one place that the same team will be taking part in the talks 02.
Conclusion
The ball is now in Iranian court and the last high level contact to convince Iran is between Shehbaz and Pezeshkian. It is expected that Iran will reach to a decision on April 20 morning and a delegation may leave Tehran for Islamabad in the afternoon, having a time of more than 24 hours before the ceasefire ends.
Finally, at the end of the day, there was nothing finalized. Everything was in ambiguity. Lets see the sun of 20 April rises with some good news or the process is stalled due to lack of trust at both sides.
