RAWALPINDI — Pakistan's military is "cautiously optimistic" about its mediation between Iran and the United States, its spokesman said on Friday, October 30, in his first interview since a high-level delegation visited Tehran this week, Reuters reported in an exclusive interview from Rawalpindi. The comments are the first on-record assessment from Islamabad's military since Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir — Pakistan's chief mediator in efforts to de-escalate the now eight-month-old Iran war — returned from his second Tehran trip this month.
Munir travelled to Tehran most recently on Monday, October 26, alongside Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin — a follow-up to the delegation's earlier talks in the Iranian capital that Awaaz Punjab reported at the time. Asked whether the two trips were a positive sign, Inter-Services Public Relations director general Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told Reuters: "Why would the Field Marshal be going twice if it is not for some positivity? So yes, of course." He added: "The word that we would use is always cautiously optimistic." Speaking at the armed forces headquarters in Rawalpindi, Chaudhry declined to say what was discussed in Tehran or whether the United States had backed the trip.
Defence pact door left open — and a warning about 'spoilers'
Chaudhry also said the wording of the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement — signed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye on August 7, under which an attack on any signatory is treated as an attack on all — does not bar new members, Reuters reported. He was answering a question on whether Iran itself could join the pact. After Monday's Tehran talks, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said regional security should be ensured by regional countries without foreign intervention. Chaudhry warned, however, that there were still "powerful spoilers and detractors" who believe the conflict serves them; he did not say who they were.
Pakistan's mediation role is not new: in April, Islamabad hosted talks between a US delegation led by Vice President JD Vance and an Iranian delegation led by parliament speaker Bagher Ghalibaf. This week US envoy Tom Barrack said Washington is close to an Iran deal as regional powers mediate, citing the efforts of Qatar, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye. Separately on Friday, Qatari mediators returned to Tehran to push their own draft plan, which Tehran has so far dismissed, Reuters reported — Washington wants nuclear issues included from the start of negotiations, while Tehran demands that the US first end its port blockade and lift oil export sanctions.
For Punjabi and Indian workers, truckers and traders across the Gulf, the mediation track is not distant diplomacy: the same war has kept the Strait of Hormuz dangerous for shipping, oil prices near record highs and air routes disrupted for eight months, and any credible move towards a settlement would ease pressure on fuel costs, remittances and jobs across the region. No agreement has been announced, and Chaudhry's careful wording — optimistic, but only cautiously — signals that Islamabad is managing expectations while the talks continue.
Sources: Reuters, October 30, 2026 (Rawalpindi, exclusive interview with ISPR director general Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry); Al Jazeera live coverage, October 30, 2026; Clash Report summary of the Reuters interview and US envoy Tom Barrack's remarks, October 30, 2026.