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Backchannel Silence: Foreign Office Declines to Confirm or Deny Field Marshal Asim Munir’s Tehran Mission
Pakistan’s Foreign Office has refused to confirm or deny reports regarding an urgent visit by Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir to Tehran. The diplomatic silence follows reports that the army chief's mission to finalize a temporary US-Iran peace accord was deferred at the last minute to give Iran more time to analyze a new Washington-backed proposal, even as Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi holds intensive parallel talks with the Iranian leadership.
ND
by News Desk
2026-05-22
Backchannel Silence: Foreign Office Declines to Confirm or Deny Field Marshal Asim Munir’s Tehran Mission

Detailed Report

  • The Army Chief Silence & Naqvi’s Diplomacy: At the weekly press briefing on Friday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi maintained a strict "no comment" stance regarding rumors that Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir is visiting Iran, refusing to confirm or deny the travel. The strategic ambiguity comes during a highly sensitive week of regional mediation, closely following two back-to-back emergency trips to Tehran by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi (on May 16 and May 20) to hold high-level consultations with the Iranian leadership.

  • PM Shehbaz's 75th-Anniversary China Mission: The Foreign Office formally announced that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will undertake a high-profile official visit to China from May 23 to 26 at the invitation of Beijing. Marking the 75th anniversary of Pakistan-China diplomatic ties, the visit aims to consolidate their "All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership." PM Shehbaz will hold pivotal face-to-face meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in Beijing, alongside anchoring a major Pakistan-China Business-to-Business Conference in Hangzhou targeting advancements in IT, telecom, and energy storage.

  • The Global Mediation Alignment: Spokesperson Andrabi confirmed that the ongoing backchannel U.S.-Iran peace talks will likely form a core talking point during PM Shehbaz's discussions with President Xi, noting that Islamabad and Beijing share absolute trust on Middle East affairs. This ties into a massive ongoing diplomatic outreach led by Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar—who recently held crisis-management calls with the foreign ministers of Qatar, Egypt, and Uzbekistan—as well as two personal telephonic consultations between PM Shehbaz and the Qatari Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

  • Condemning Nuclear Attacks & Flotilla Updates: Taking a firm stand on international law violations, the Foreign Office issued a stern condemnation of the May 17 drone strikes targeting Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Commenting on the UAE incident, Andrabi warned, "Any deliberate targeting of nuclear facilities constitutes a grave violation of international law. Nuclear installations must never be targeted under any circumstances." Additionally, Pakistan welcomed the safe arrival in Istanbul of all aid volunteers—including prominent humanitarian Saad Edhi—who were detained during Israel's interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla.
Tagged:

#ForeignOffice #AsimMunir #USIranConflict #TehranDiplomacy #MohsinNaqvi #StraitOfHormuz #MiddleEastPeace #PakistanForeignPolicy #BreakingNewsPakistan
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