Pakistan Invites US and Iran to Resume Peace Talks

Pakistan has invited senior Iranian officials to Islamabad for diplomatic consultations as it seeks to revive a mediation effort aimed at easing tensions between Tehran and the United States. The Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Monday that Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar extended an invitation to his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, to discuss a peace process that officials described as stalled.

The outreach comes after a period of heightened volatility that has again put the mediation channel under strain. During that period, US President Donald Trump publicly accused Iran’s leadership of duplicity over the state of negotiations, adding to an already fragile environment for engagement.

Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding under renewed strain

Pakistan’s diplomatic push is framed around stabilising the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, a framework signed in June. Officials and analysts say the agreement has struggled to prevent recurring military escalations and naval blockades, leaving the mechanism vulnerable to repeated shocks.

Under the arrangement, Pakistan positions itself as a neutral facilitator intended to narrow a communication gap between Washington and Tehran. That role, however, is being tested by what the source describes as a deep erosion of trust and by objectives that remain in conflict.

Trust gap and competing demands complicate mediation

Pakistan maintains that the memorandum remains the main vehicle for peace, but repeated ceasefire breakdowns have affected perceptions of how effective the process can be. Analysts cited in the source say Pakistan is increasingly viewed as a logistical conduit rather than a decisive arbiter as both sides hold firm to different end goals.

The source says the United States continues to demand total compliance, while Iran is focused on preserving strategic leverage linked to the Strait of Hormuz. Those opposing priorities, combined with repeated disruptions, are described as limiting the space for a single, coherent negotiating track.

Timing unclear as Iran disputes formal US negotiations

The timeframe for any Islamabad talks remains uncertain. Tehran continues to deny that formal negotiations with the United States are active, according to the source, and is instead focusing on technical maritime discussions with Oman.

Against that backdrop, the source says Pakistan’s diplomatic capital hinges on whether it can reconcile these separate tracks before additional military posturing makes the current framework obsolete. For now, the invitation signals Islamabad’s intent to keep the June memorandum alive even as the surrounding political conditions remain unsettled.