00:00Pakistan was riding high in June on a wave of diplomatic success.
00:04Difficult and intense rounds of talks in Islamabad to end the U.S.-Iran war
00:10finally culminated in a memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran.
00:21When we brought all the two countries onto the table after 47 years of hate-mongering,
00:27and that was a big success for Pakistan.
00:30But that ceasefire deal didn't hold for long, and fighting resumed.
00:36Can Islamabad again take center stage in mediation efforts?
00:41It's very difficult to say whether Pakistan really can help in taking things forward.
00:47We are trying to convince both of the parties who have good relations with Pakistan
00:53to find some amicable solution.
00:57The U.S. and Iran clash on various issues, but the central dispute remains the reopening
01:03of the Strait of Hormuz.
01:06Shortly after the war began with the U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran in February,
01:11Tehran effectively shut the Strategic Maritime Corridor.
01:15The global economy relies on a free flow of oil tankers through the strait.
01:20Recent talks have focused on a possible deal between Iran and Oman,
01:24which lies on the other side of the strait over the transit and management of the waterway.
01:30It is unfortunate that Strait of Hormuz has turned out to be a challenging point for the two sides.
01:34But at the end of the day, what Pakistan achieved under Islamabad MOU has remained significant
01:40and will remain significant.
01:42Irrespective of the fact that right now, from the U.S. side, it is Qatar.
01:46From the Iranian side, it's Oman, which are taking the lead.
01:48But Pakistan's position will always remain as key in terms of stabilizing this region
01:53for at least a parallel negotiating process to remain engaged.
01:57But Iran warned that any deal with Oman would not see an immediate reopening of Hormuz.
02:05First, there are conditions to be met, including compensation from Washington for war damages.
02:11U.S. President Donald Trump responded in kind, saying he was likewise demanding
02:17compensation from Iran.
02:18The most concrete step from Pakistan should be to de-escalate the situation
02:25and avoid further escalation of the conflict.
02:30The Islamabad MOU is a yardstick foundation and of course,
02:35they should start from that point, from where they finish.
02:38Against the backdrop of on and off hostilities between the U.S. and Iran,
02:43Pakistan has sought to bolster its regional security partnerships.
02:48And on August 7th, it signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement with Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
02:55Just like NATO's Article 5, one of the Mecca Pact clauses says that a strike against one
03:01would be considered a strike against all signatories.
03:05So, will Iran now see this new alliance as a threat?
03:10And will it be counterproductive to Islamabad's mediation efforts?
03:14What we are doing at this moment is actually should be comforting for Tehran.
03:18And Tehran has spoken on that.
03:20Because one, this is not an alliance against any country.
03:23Second, it is based on credible deterrence.
03:25So, this basically means we do not want unwanted wars to be thrust on us
03:31by the region as a direct or as an indirect invariable.
03:37The tripartite Mecca agreement does not have a common enemy on the face of it.
03:43It is more of a symbolic value rather than an operational framework for defense.
03:57In short, the pact doesn't necessarily undermine Pakistan's position as a mediator.
04:04Islamabad has historically close relations with U.S. President Donald Trump.
04:09And Pakistan also shares a 900-kilometer border with Iran with long-standing ties with Tehran.
04:16You see, Pakistan wanted that any country can play the role.
04:22We are not hindering anyone.
04:25But Pakistan's position is unique.
04:28Pakistan's relation with China, with Russia, with U.S., with Iran.
04:34Does Iran still see a role for Pakistan as a mediator?
04:37And can Pakistan achieve what others have not,
04:40bringing Washington and Tehran back to the negotiating table?
04:44There is a mutual interest connecting Pakistan and Iran, and that is the border.
04:50That's why initially Iran agreed to the mediation role that Pakistan wanted to play.
04:56Pakistan still has a meaningful leverage in this contest because both the countries trust Pakistan.
05:03Yet what happens next may ultimately be beyond Pakistan's control.
05:09At the end of the day, it is going to be Tehran and Washington which is going to decide,
05:12and they are going to decide when and to what leverage they are willing to give each other.
05:16So we cannot guarantee peace, but we can make the road towards peace much more easier.
05:22And that is what the actual leverage of Islamabad lies.
05:25I think it is before we communicate.
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