Pakistan stands out amid flurry of diplomacy at UNGA

New York, 2023: Pakistan found itself at the forefront of diplomatic efforts at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Tuesday, as world leaders gathered to address pressing global issues. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar were actively engaged in a series of meetings, advocating for a diplomatic resolution to the ongoing US-Iran conflict which has impacted global trade and energy markets.

During his speech at the UNGA, US President Donald Trump praised PM Shehbaz Sharif, referring to him as a "terrific man". Trump claimed that Pakistan's Prime Minister had saved "30 million lives and probably many more than that", while discussing various conflicts he claimed to have helped settle, including the Pakistan-India, Thailand-Cambodia, Armenia-Azerbaijan, and Gaza conflicts.

Pakistan has been actively pursuing diplomatic efforts with both the United States and Iran to restore negotiations between the two nations. Despite mixed signals from Trump in his address to the UNGA, it was later revealed that Trump had met with an Iranian delegation during the General Assembly, a meeting that lasted for three hours, according to a US official.

Sources at the United Nations stated that Pakistan had been "quietly but persistently urging" the US and Iran to maintain indirect and direct contacts, respectively. The previous day, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi made a visit to Tehran, where he met with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni to discuss mediation efforts.

The efforts by Pakistan's leadership to mediate between Washington and Tehran were also appreciated by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who expressed gratitude for the country's role in promoting regional peace and stability. Guterres' spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, emphasized Pakistan's critical role in the mediation process and highlighted the importance of diplomatic engagement between the US and Iran as a means to end the conflict.

The Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the UN reported that the ministers' consultative meeting on September 21 further underscored the need for dialogue and diplomacy as the path to achieving a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The meeting discussed recent regional and international developments and reiterated the importance of upholding the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding for lasting peace and stability.