How ironic it is that as US Vice President J D Vance embarked on his journey to Pakistan where he is scheduled to hold talks with Iranians, Israel stepped up its bombing of Lebanon. Islamabad is hosting negotiations as both the US and Iran are said to be desperately seeking a diplomatic off-ramp.
Given deep mutual mistrust and rising regional tensions, one cannot expect any major breakthrough at Islamabad talks. That is why perhaps Pakistan has set a seemingly modest but highly important goal for itself: a deal between the US and the Islamic republic to keep talks going. That is what perhaps these two sides want at this point in time, as maintaining an ongoing dialogue is in the interest of both the parties.
Sadeq Daneshmand, Bandar Abbas, Iran
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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