The Pakistan government announced on Sunday that it would soon host talks between the United States and Iran, although no immediate reaction has been made by either the U.S. or Iran, and it is unclear if these talks will be direct or indirect.
“Pakistan is pleased that Iran and the United States have both expressed confidence in our role as a facilitator for these talks, which will take place in the coming days,” said Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in a televised speech after meeting with high diplomats from Turkey, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia in Islamabad.
Mr. Dar indicated that the ministers had approved Pakistan’s peace efforts and that they would reconvene on Monday to discuss the end of the month-long war. The Foreign Ministry did not respond to questions regarding this announcement.
Pakistan has emerged as a mediator, thanks to its relatively good relations with both Washington and Tehran. Pakistani officials have said that their public initiative follows weeks of discreet diplomacy, though they did not provide many details.
Meanwhile, the President of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, stated that these talks were just a facade following the arrival of about 2,500 U.S. Marines to the Middle East for amphibious landings. He added that Iranian forces were “awaiting the arrival of American troops to put them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” according to state media.
Over 3,000 people have been killed in this month-long war, which began with American and Israeli strikes against Iran, triggering attacks by Iran on Israel and neighboring Arab states in the Gulf.
The war has also threatened the supply of oil and gas, with Iran’s grip on the strategic Strait of Hormuz shaking the markets.
Egyptian Badr Abdelatty, Turkish Hakan Fidan, and Saudi Prince Faisal Bin Farhan were in Islamabad for talks scheduled a few days ago, after the U.S. proposed a “list of actions” in 15 points to Iran, transmitted through Pakistan as a framework for a potential peace agreement.
Mr. Abdelatty mentioned that these meetings aimed to open a “direct dialogue” between the United States and Iran, who mainly communicated through intermediaries during the war.
Iranian officials have publicly rejected the framework proposed by the U.S. and dismissed the idea of negotiating under pressure. However, Press TV, the English-language channel of Iranian public television, reported that Tehran had drafted its own five-point proposal, citing an anonymous official.
This plan would advocate for the end of assassinations of Iranian officials, guarantees against future attacks, war reparations, an end to hostilities, and “the exercise of Iran’s sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.”
Iran has relaxed some restrictions on commercial vessels in the strait, agreeing on Saturday night to allow the passage of an additional 20 vessels flying the Pakistani flag. This sends a clear signal that Iran remains open to trade with the world, on the condition that the U.S. abandons coercion, said Asif Durrani, a former Pakistani ambassador to Iran.
A counselor from the United Arab Emirates, Anwar Gargash, called for any resolution to the conflict to include “clear guarantees” that Iranian attacks on its neighbors would not recur.
Mr. Gargash emphasized that the Iranian government had become “the primary threat” to Gulf security and demanded reparations for attacks on civilian infrastructure.
Iran warned on Sunday of further escalation after airstrikes hit several universities, some of which, according to Israel, were used for nuclear research and development.
The Revolutionary Guard, a paramilitary force, issued a statement warning that Iran would consider Israeli universities and American university campuses in the region as “legitimate targets” if no security guarantees were given to Iranian universities, state media reported.
American universities, including Georgetown, New York University, and Northwestern, have campuses in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
“If the U.S. government wants its universities in the region to be spared, it must condemn the bombing of the (Iranian) universities before noon on Monday, March 30th, in an official statement,” the Guard declared.
They also demanded that the U.S. prevent Israel from striking Iranian universities and research centers.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei stated last week that dozens of universities and research centers had been hit, including the Iranian University of Science and Technology and the University of Technology in Isfahan.
Iranian authorities claim that over 1,900 people have been killed in the Islamic Republic, while 19 deaths have been reported in Israel.
In Lebanon, where Israel launched an offensive in the south targeting the militant group Hezbollah, authorities said over 1,200 people had been killed in the country since the war began.
In Iraq, where Iran-backed militias entered the conflict, 80 security personnel died. In the Gulf states, 20 people were killed, and four in the occupied West Bank.
