Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan’s army chief, landed in Tehran on Tuesday evening with a delegation, the fifth time he has gone to Iran since the April ceasefire between Tehran and Washington. Islamabad brokered that truce. Now it is trying to keep it from collapsing.
IRNA reported that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi travelled with him and that Munir was expected to meet Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi first.
The welcome was not warm on substance. Security chief Mohsen Rezaei told Munir that “not even a tiny bit of enriched nuclear material will leave Iran” and that “there will be no negotiations until America takes steps to build trust.” Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s chief negotiator, was blunter still. “We have nothing new to say,” he said, adding that America cannot earn Iran’s trust unless it meets seven conditions.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei described the talks as mainly about bilateral relations and cooperation. Asked about the purpose of the trip, he said he was unaware of a specific agenda and would have to speak with the field marshal.
The Islamabad MoU
Pakistan keeps pointing back to the Islamabad MoU. Its Foreign Office said on October 9 that the document is “already in place” and that some points now under discussion line up with it. Ishaq Dar said on October 2 that Iran’s seven-day plan came from the MoU.
Analysts are less sure it still works. Umer Karim said both sides had signed off and “perhaps a new mechanism is required to start negotiations.” Krieg called it “politically alive” but “operationally dead.”
The timing drew comment too. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks in Tehran a day earlier. Seyed Mojtaba Jalazadeh said that suggests Iran “prefers to keep multiple diplomatic channels open.” Two weeks before Munir’s trip, Pakistan and its allies agreed to speed up the deployment of forces to Saudi Arabia.
Hormuz and the carrier
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the most urgent problems facing the mediators. Disruption to shipping there can push up oil prices, freight costs and insurance premiums. Reuters said Iran still has an offer to reopen the strait within seven days, while Tehran and Washington keep blaming each other for the insecurity.
Trump rejected an Iranian proposal to end the war on September 26. The US has also sent an additional aircraft carrier to the Middle East, due to arrive by late November.
