Asim Munir Arrives in Tehran in Move to Ease Tensions and Arrange More US-Iran Talks |
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Cairo: Pakistan’s Army chief arrived Wednesday (April 15) for talks in Tehran in the latest diplomatic move to ease tensions in West Asia and arrange a second round of negotiations between the United States and Iran after almost seven weeks of war.
The Pakistani military said the delegation included Field Marshal Asim Munir, the country’s interior minister and other senior security officials. The group is “part of the ongoing mediation efforts”, the military said, but it gave no details.
Pakistan has emerged as a key mediator in the conflict after it hosted rare direct talks between the US and Iran in Islamabad, a move authorities said helped narrow differences between the two sides.
Meanwhile, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Saudi Arabia on an official visit to discuss regional issues. A statement from Sharif’s office in Islamabad said he was received at the airport in Jeddah by senior Saudi officials. Sharif was accompanied by Pakistan’s foreign minister and information minister.
Officials say US and Iran are making progress
The US blockade on Iranian ports and renewed Iranian threats strained the week-old ceasefire agreement, but regional officials said they were making progress, telling the Associated Press that the US and Iran had an “in principle agreement” to extend it to allow for more diplomacy. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter.
But even as mediators worked for peace, tensions were still simmering. The commander of Iran’s joint military command, Ali Abdollahi, threatened to halt trade in the region if the US........