Athens, April 29 (IANS) The United States continues to depend on Islamabad for mediation in conflict with Iran despite categorising Pakistan as high risk alongside other conflict-ridden countries, including Afghanistan, Somalia, and Yemen.
Iran, meanwhile, regards Pakistan’s role as compromised by its perceived alignment with the US and Saudi Arabia, raising allegations of bias and procedural failures that undermined trust, a report said on Wednesday.
“Although the United States Department of State recognised Pakistani immigrants as ‘high risk’, the Trump administration has entrusted the economically struggling country with conflict resolution in Iran. Effective January 21, 2026, the Department of State paused all visa issuances to Pakistani immigrant visa applicants as part of a temporary, comprehensive review of screening procedures to prevent immigrants from becoming a ‘public charge’. This policy targets countries deemed high-risk for relying on US public benefits, affecting consular processing, not visa petition approvals,” a report in Greek City Times detailed.
The report cited Iranian officials and state media as alleging that Pakistan acted as a “biased intermediary”, favouring the US rather than acting as a neutral broker.
Iranian MP Ebrahim Rezaei remarked that Pakistan “is not a suitable mediator”, arguing that it “always takes [Trump’s] interests into account and does not speak against the Americans’ wishes.”
He reportedly accused Pakistan of failing to publicly criticise the US for backtracking on its commitments.
Citing Iranian media, the report noted that Pakistani mediators failed to accurately convey Iranian positions while relaying unfulfilled assurances and prioritising American terms on issues including nuclear restrictions and regional de-escalation.
This, it said, has sparked public debates on Iranian television and statements questioning Pakistan’s credibility, further deepening the “trust deficit”.
“While mediating a ceasefire that relied on US leverage, such as the naval blockade of Iranian ports, Pakistan issued a transit order allowing third-country goods to flow overland to Iran via six designated routes. Critics, including some US-aligned voices, called this ‘punching a legal hole’ in the blockade, undermining the very pressure Pakistan was using to push talks,” the report mentioned.
Raising concerns over Islamabad’s credibility, it said, “Independent reporting portrays Pakistan as an overambitious but limited broker whose efforts exposed its constrained influence and acted as an active saboteur.
–IANS
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