Pakistani army spokesperson warns of “powerful troublemakers and detractors” who still believe the conflict serves them.
Published on October 30, 2026
Pakistan’s military is “cautiously optimistic” about mediation efforts between Iran and the United States as regional countries seek to restore a ceasefire in the eight-month-old war.
Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, a spokesman for the Pakistani military, suggested Friday that there were positive signs in attempts to de-escalate the conflict. His comments to the Reuters news agency were the first since a high-level delegation visited Tehran this week.
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Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan’s chief mediator, visited Tehran twice this month, most recently on Monday, alongside Saudi and Turkish officials.
“Why would the field marshal go there twice if not for some positivity? So yes, of course,” Chaudhry replied when asked if the trips were a positive sign.
“The word we would use is always cautiously optimistic,” added Chaudhry, director general of Inter-Services Public Relations.
He also warned that some parties were seeking to obstruct mediation between the United States and Iran.
There are still “powerful disruptors and detractors” who believe the conflict serves them, he added without naming them.
Speaking from the garrison city of Rawalpindi, where the headquarters of Pakistan’s armed forces are located, Chaudhry declined to say what had been discussed in Tehran or whether the United States had supported the trip.
His comments Friday come as Qatari mediators arrive in Tehran in another apparent attempt to broker a resumption of the June ceasefire that collapsed months later.
Mecca Defense Pact
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin joined Pakistan’s Munir in Tehran on Monday.
Their two countries signed a joint defense agreement with Pakistan on August 7, saying an attack on one signatory will be treated as an attack on all.
Mecca’s joint defense agreement has taken on increased importance as the war in Iran has reshaped regional alliances and raised fears of wider conflict in the Middle East.
While all three signatories say the deal aims for collective deterrence and regional security, analysts see its evolution as closely linked to efforts by regional powers to manage the fallout from the Iran-US confrontation.
After Monday’s discussions, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said regional security should be ensured by countries in the region, without foreign intervention.
The deal’s language does not prohibit new members from joining, Chaudhry said Friday when asked if Iran could join.
“Anyone who shares a common vision of collective deterrence and regional peace, why not? Everyone is welcome,” he said, adding that it was up to the political leaders of the three main parties to decide.
Asked if more Pakistani troops would be sent to Saudi Arabia as part of the deal, Chaudhry said it would depend on the situation and the decision of the political leaders of the two countries.
He said Pakistan was determined to defend Saudi Arabia and the holy sites of Mecca and Medina. “We are not part of the Yemeni conflict, which is an internal conflict in Yemen,” he added.
Fighting between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group has been reignited by the Iranian conflict, stoking fears of a wider war.
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