Abdul Basit Alvi
The United States–Iran conflict escalated into full-scale war on February 28, 2026, rapidly becoming one of the most dangerous geopolitical crises of the century and drawing in Israel, Gulf monarchies, and other regional actors. It began with a massive coordinated US-Israeli assault—“Operation Epic Fury” and “Operation Roaring Lion”—that targeted Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, military leadership, and command centers, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and striking more than 1,250 targets within 48 hours. Instead of forcing Iran’s surrender, the attack triggered a sweeping retaliation in which Iran launched sustained missile and drone strikes against US bases across the Gulf, Israeli cities such as Tel Aviv and Haifa, and countries hosting US forces including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Bahrain, using advanced missiles like Khoramshahr, Kheibar Shekan, and Qadr variants. The conflict expanded further as Iran struck oil infrastructure and effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, causing global oil prices to surge by up to 35 percent, while the human toll climbed into the thousands across Iran, Lebanon, Israel, US forces, and civilians throughout the region.
By the fourth week, Pakistan emerged as the central mediator under Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, leveraging ties with both Washington and Tehran despite facing its own security and economic pressures. Pakistan conducted intensive diplomacy through direct contacts with US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, backchannel engagement with American officials, and coordination with regional powers like Turkiye and Egypt, earning recognition when Trump amplified Sharif’s call for dialogue and announced a five-day pause in certain strikes while proposals covering sanctions relief, nuclear limits, monitoring, missile restrictions, and maritime access were conveyed to Iran through Pakistani channels. Iran’s civilian leadership and foreign ministry acknowledged Pakistan’s role and engaged with its mediation despite hardline military rejection and no shift in Tehran’s core positions, with longstanding trust, Pakistan’s role as Iran’s diplomatic intermediary in Washington since 1992, and Munir’s ties reinforcing Islamabad’s position as a trusted broker; this was further reflected when new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei expressed warmth toward Pakistan. Internationally, the United Nations, European Union, China, Russia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and major global media recognized Pakistan’s efforts, while the White House described the diplomacy as sensitive but confirmed Pakistan’s involvement, and growing momentum suggested Islamabad could host potential US-Iran talks, marking a significant rise in its status as a global mediator.
Today, Pakistan finds itself in an unprecedented global spotlight, not as a country beset by internal challenges or regional complexities, but as a strong, confident, and respected nation whose voice in international affairs carries genuine weight and importance. The transformation has been swift and dramatic: Pakistan, which before the crisis was often viewed through the narrow lens of its economic difficulties and security challenges, has now emerged as an indispensable player in one of the world’s most dangerous conflicts, a country whose leaders are on the phone with the American president and the Iranian president simultaneously, shuttling proposals and building the architecture for a potential peace agreement. This elevation of Pakistan’s global standing is directly attributable to the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, whose coordinated, complementary approach has demonstrated that Pakistan can speak with one voice on matters of international importance. The Prime Minister has provided the political vision and diplomatic persistence, engaging tirelessly with the Iranian leadership and articulating Pakistan’s principled position on the world stage, while the Field Marshal has provided the strategic depth and personal relationships with American leadership that give Pakistan’s mediation its credibility and its weight. Together, they have shown the world that Pakistan is not merely a spectator to great power conflicts but an active, capable, and responsible stakeholder in international peace and security, a country that can use its unique position—its relationships with both Washington and Tehran, its experience with conflict and mediation, its geostrategic location at the crossroads of South Asia and the Middle East—to make a genuine difference in resolving crises that threaten the entire world.
The men behind this remarkable rise of Pakistan—Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir—have earned not only the appreciation of the international community but also the profound gratitude and pride of the people of Pakistan, who have watched their country’s leadership navigate one of the most dangerous international crises of recent times with skill, courage, and unwavering commitment to peace. In a nation often divided by political differences, there has been a remarkable convergence of public support for the way the Prime Minister and Field Marshal have represented Pakistan on the world stage, with citizens from Karachi to Lahore, from Peshawar to Quetta, expressing pride in seeing their leaders engage on equal terms with the President of the United States, being praised by the leadership of Iran, and being thanked by the international community for their sincere efforts to stop the war. The sense of national pride is palpable and well-founded: Pakistan has demonstrated that it possesses not only the willingness but also the capability to play a leadership role in global affairs, to use its diplomatic resources and strategic relationships to advance the cause of peace, and to stand as a voice of moderation and responsibility in a world increasingly fractured by great power competition and regional rivalries. The people of Pakistan recognize that the stature their country now enjoys is the result of deliberate, courageous, and sustained effort by their leaders, who placed the national interest above all else and worked tirelessly to secure for their nation a position of dignity, influence, and respect on the global stage.
As the war between the United States and Iran continues, with global markets held hostage by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, with the human toll climbing every day, and with the specter of further escalation always looming, the efforts of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir remain more critical than ever. The world looks to Pakistan not as a peripheral player but as a central actor in the search for peace, a country whose unique relationships, strategic position, and wise leadership make it the indispensable mediator in one of the most dangerous conflicts of our time. The appreciation that has come from President Trump, from the Iranian leadership, and from the entire international community is a testament to the effectiveness of Pakistan’s approach and the sincerity of its commitment to ending the war. The Pakistani Prime Minister and Field Marshal have shown that even in the darkest moments of conflict, when the machinery of war seems unstoppable and the momentum toward escalation appears inexorable, determined and principled diplomacy can make a difference. They have shown that Pakistan, a nation of over two hundred and forty million people with a rich history and a strategic location at the heart of Asia, can be not just a country that suffers from the conflicts of others but a country that helps to resolve them, a voice of reason, a force for peace, and a leader in the community of nations. Today, Pakistan stands in the spotlight, a strong country whose voice is sought after and valued, whose leaders are trusted by both sides of a bitter conflict, and whose emergence as a key mediator in the Iran-US war represents a defining moment in the nation’s history—a moment that will be remembered as the time when Pakistan, under the extraordinary leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, stepped forward to meet the greatest challenge of its generation and, in doing so, elevated its standing in the eyes of the world and the hearts of its people forever.
