3SEP

Pakistan pledges to continue mediating alone

1 min read

16:40UTC

Deputy PM Ishaq Dar confirmed Pakistan will continue its mediator role despite the Islamabad breakdown.

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ConflictDeveloping

Key takeaway

Pakistan holds the mediator role alone, with 10 days to produce a follow-up session.

Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar confirmed on 12 April that Islamabad will continue mediating between the US and Iran despite the talks producing no agreement. Dar stated: "Islamabad has been and will continue" as mediator. Iran's Foreign Ministry signalled willingness to continue but proposed no date.

Pakistan hosted the talks by invoking the precedent of the 1988 Geneva Accords, when it hosted proximity negotiations between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan. Pakistani officials logged more than 25 high-level contacts in the days preceding the talks to arrange the format. Sessions shifted from proximity to direct, with Pakistani officials mediating in the room.

Vance's departure leaves Pakistan as the only state with an active claim to the mediator role. Oman, which facilitated earlier indirect channels, has not publicly offered to host a next round. Egypt relayed a truce offer in early April but has not been part of the Islamabad format. Pakistan now has roughly 10 days to produce a follow-up session before the ceasefire expires around 22 April.

Pakistan's neutrality took damage during the talks themselves. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif posted anti-Israel content on social media during the opening session , an unforced error that compromised the host country's image of impartiality. Whether that incident weakens Islamabad's standing as a future venue remains to be seen.

Deep Analysis

In plain English

Pakistan offered to host the talks and serve as a go-between because it has diplomatic relations with both the US and Iran, and because it wanted to establish itself as a regional power broker. After the talks failed to produce a deal, Pakistan's Deputy PM Ishaq Dar said his country would keep trying. The problem is that Pakistan's value as a mediator depends on being trusted by both sides. During the talks, Pakistan's Defence Minister posted on social media calling Israel 'a cancerous state'. Israel immediately said Pakistan could not be a neutral mediator. That controversy has not been resolved. Pakistan needs another round of talks to happen in Islamabad to prove the first round was not a one-off. If no second round is scheduled before the ceasefire expires, Pakistan's diplomatic investment is wasted.

What could happen next?

Consequence
Pakistan's mediating credibility is contingent on producing a second round before the ceasefire expires; without a scheduled session, Islamabad's role as a diplomatic channel becomes a historical footnote rather than an active mechanism.
Risk
The Pakistan Defence Minister's social media post calling Israel 'a cancerous state' remains unresolved; Netanyahu's office specifically stated Pakistan cannot be a neutral arbiter, which limits Islamabad's ability to serve as a venue if the US-Israel relationship constrains the format.

Sources:NPR

Mentions:Iran →Afghanistan →Islamabad →Oman →Geneva →Egypt →1988 Geneva Accords →Israel →Khawaja Asif →Ishaq Dar →Pakistan →

First Reported In

Update #66 · Islamabad collapses: 10 days to expiry

NPR· 12 Apr 2026

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Causes and effects

This Event

Pakistan pledges to continue mediating alone

Pakistan is now the only active mediator with a stated commitment to continue, but its credibility depends on producing a follow-up session before the ceasefire expires.

Led to

Munir in Tehran; Vance's walkout explained

Pakistan's confirmed continuation of mediation after Islamabad talks ended (ID:2246) is the mandate under which Munir's personal Tehran visit operates.

Occurred 16 Apr 2026

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Different Perspectives

China's foreign ministry

Spokesman Lin Jian rejected Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's 25 August warning that Iranian oil buyers face an "economic D-Day", saying sanctions do not help and that Beijing would safeguard its own rights and interests. China's Iranian crude imports had already halved for unrelated reasons.

Iraq's government and Erbil authorities

Erbil authorities said 10 explosive-laden drones were shot down over the city on 1-2 September with no casualties. Iraq's government condemned the attacks without naming Iran as their source, and neither Washington nor Baghdad confirmed the IRGC's claim to have hit US bases there.

Bahrain Defence Force

The General Command said air defences intercepted several Iranian missiles and drones on 1-2 September and called the use of such weapons against civilians and private property a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.

Kuwait's Fire Force and foreign ministry

KUNA reported a hostile Iranian drone struck a residential complex in Kuwait City on 2 September; Fire Force spokesman Brigadier General Mohammad Al-Gharib said losses were confined to property. Kuwait's foreign ministry called the attack a clear breach of its sovereignty.

Jordan's Armed Forces

Petra carried a statement that air defences intercepted eight missiles violating Jordanian airspace early on 31 August and 10 of 13 fired on 1 September. The statement named no target and did not address the IRGC's claim to have struck Camp Titin and killed US personnel.

CENTCOM

CENTCOM's 1 September target list named IRGC air defence, radar, maritime and mine-laying sites in Iran but no tanker, after Axios reported anonymous officials describing a Trump-approved "tanker for tanker" drone policy. A CENTCOM spokesman declined to confirm the policy and referred questions to policymakers.