PM Shehbaz, Iran’s envoy discuss peace efforts

Pakistan and Iran discussed on Wednesday the ongoing regional situation and peace efforts.

As per the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Ambassador of Iran Reza Amiri Moghadam called on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif today.

The meeting comes after US President Donald Trump announced to extend the ceasefire with Iran at the request of PM Shehbaz and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir.

In a statement on social media, Trump said he had agreed to a request by Pakistan, which has mediated peace talks, “to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal.”

Trump, who, with Israel, launched the war on Iran on February 28, said he decided to extend the ceasefire because “the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so,” a reference to US-Israeli assassinations of some of the country’s leaders, including the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has been succeeded by his son.

Thousands of people have been killed since the war began in countries across the Middle East, and the global economy has been shaken by the virtual closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital conduit for oil and gas.

Trump said he would continue the US Navy’s blockade of Iran’s ports and shore, which Iran’s leaders have said is an act of war, and became a sticking point as the two countries wavered this week on whether to send negotiators to a second round of peace talks in Islamabad, the Pakistani capital.