Pakistan is pressing Iran and the US to return to negotiations under an agreement brokered by Islamabad, despite renewed strikes and a failure to implement the deal, Pakistan’s ambassador to the UN told The National.
The comments come as tensions between Iran and the US have again intensified, with renewed attacks following a period of relative calm and continued tensions over the Strait of Hormuz. Pakistan has increasingly positioned itself as an intermediary in the conflict, working alongside countries in the region including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, China and Qatar.
“There is this lingering lack of trust on both sides,” Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said when asked why the agreement had not been implemented. “There is also a slight lack of willingness to go ahead with implementation of this MoU [memorandum of understanding], but we are persisting.”
Mr Ahmad said that despite setbacks, Pakistan remains engaged with Washington and Tehran at senior levels.
Pakistan is serving the final year of a two-year term as an elected member of the UN Security Council, giving it a seat on the body responsible for maintaining international peace and security as it seeks to mediate some of the conflicts on the Security Council's agenda.
The ambassador said Pakistan had maintained direct channels with both governments despite the renewed attacks. “We have open lines of communication with both parties, with both Iran and the US, and at high levels,” he said.
“We believe that the best way to resolve the situation and to conclude a comprehensive and conclusive deal is to return to the negotiations table, and for that we have a framework in the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding. Everything is there. They need to return … and I hope that they will realise this soon.”
Asked whether Iran or the US was more reluctant to resume negotiations, Mr Ahmad declined to single out either side. “It’s not as simple as that, to say who is more responsible or who is not keen or willing to return to the negotiations,” he said. He pointed to Pakistan’s previous mediation efforts as evidence that diplomacy remains possible.
“If we were able to pull this off, if we were able to get a ceasefire announced in April, in the midst of heavy fighting and an continuing escalation, and then we were able to bring them together, and then we, you know, led the two parties to this memorandum of understanding, there is no reason that we cannot again bring them back to the table.”
Mr Ahmad said Pakistan remained convinced that renewed negotiations offer the only sustainable path out of the confrontation. “They need to realise, and I believe and I hope that they will realise this soon.”
Gaza and the two-state solution
Turning to Gaza, Mr Ahmad warned that Israeli policies in the occupied West Bank are threatening the prospect of an eventual Palestinian state, and said the international community must take a stronger stand.
“The Gaza plan is not being implemented in full. To begin with, the first point was a ceasefire, and the ceasefire is not being respected,” he said. “You see that there are continuing violations, particularly by the Israeli side, and hundreds of people have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire was announced.”
Mr Ahmad said developments in the West Bank, including settlement expansion and settler violence, were further eroding prospects for a two-state solution.
“Whatever is happening in the West Bank, it’s so evident that the Israeli policies are going in a direction where you can say that they’re hell-bent on doing away with the concept of the two-state solution,” he said.
He said the UN and its member states should respond more forcefully. “I think it’s time for the international community and the UN to be more assertive and more forceful in ensuring that we move in a direction where, you know, the Palestinian aspirations for freedom and self-determination are respected, in accordance with international law, in accordance with international legitimacy,” Mr Ahmad said.
“Because ending the occupation eventually is the only viable way for a durable peace in the region.”
Mr Ahmad also argued that the Gaza peace plan had helped restore US support for Palestinian statehood and self-determination. “We brought back one of the main actors and one of the most influential actors when it comes to the Middle East and the Palestine and Gaza and Israel situation, the US, to recommit again to Palestinian statehood and self-determination,” he said.
UN reforms
On reform of the Security Council, Mr Ahmad acknowledged concerns over its continuing inability to act on major conflicts.
He said the central problem was the power wielded by the council’s five permanent members – Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States – and their ability to veto resolutions.
“The positions of one or the other of the permanent members, or the abuse or misuse of the veto power. So that is the main problem that is confronting the Security Council for decades,” Mr Ahmad said.
Pakistan opposes expanding the number of permanent seats on the council, arguing that doing so would "aggravate the current problems and difficulties".
Instead, Pakistan wants an expansion of elected, non-permanent members, which Mr Ahmad said would make the council more representative and shift some influence away from its permanent members.
“The best way is to increase the number of elected members who are accountable to the General Assembly and who bring in more transparency and inclusiveness in the work of the Security Council,” he said.
“That will shift the balance in the Security Council from the permanent to non-permanent members, will give more weight and influence to the elected members.”
Next UN Secretary General
Mr Ahmad also addressed the race to succeed Secretary General Antonio Guterres, whose second term ends on December 31, saying Pakistan had not yet publicly settled on a preferred candidate from the eight declared candidates.
He said there was “a clear degree of openness and anticipation that the UN could be led by a woman” for the first time, but said that gender should not override the qualifications of candidates.
“Whether it's a man or a woman, I would say that we are looking for the best candidate, the most capable one who is attached to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter,” he said.
Minutes after the interview concluded with The National, Mr Ahmad learnt that he had been appointed Pakistan’s next foreign secretary, succeeding Amna Baloch, who is due to retire on September 17.
The appointment, announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, will mean Mr Ahmad will leave his post as Pakistan’s permanent representative to the UN at the end of the month to become the country’s 34th foreign secretary.
