AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Pakistan's army announced that it is cautiously optimistic about Islamabad's efforts to mediate between Iran and America. This position was announced by the Pakistani army spokesman in his first interview after a high-ranking delegation's trip to Tehran last week.
According to a report by Al Jazeera, Asim Munir, the commander of Pakistan's army and the country's most important mediator in efforts to reduce tension in the war against Iran, which is eight months into its start, has traveled to Tehran twice this month. His latest trip took place on Monday, accompanied by officials from Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
In response to the question of whether these trips are a positive sign of progress in mediation efforts, Major General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the Pakistani army spokesman, said: If there were no signs that the situation was positive, why would the army chief travel twice? So, yes, there are definitely positive signs.
The trilateral defense pact does not close the way for new members to join
Chaudhry, who heads the Inter-Services Public Relations of Pakistan's armed forces, added: The phrase we always use is cautious optimism.
Without naming any particular party or country, he continued that there are influential actors and saboteurs who consider the continuation of this conflict to be in their interest.
The Pakistani army spokesman, in a conversation with the media from the military city of Rawalpindi, where the command of the country's armed forces is stationed, declined to disclose the details of the negotiations. He also did not explain whether America supported the recent trip of the Pakistani delegation to Tehran.
Khalid bin Salman, the Saudi defense minister, and Ibrahim Kalin, the head of Turkey's intelligence organization, accompanied Asim Munir on Monday on his trip to Tehran.
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement on August 7. An agreement according to which any aggression against one of the signatory countries is considered aggression against all members.
The Iran war and the redefinition of regional security equations
The importance of this agreement has increased in circumstances where the war against Iran has redefined regional alliances and intensified concerns about the expansion of conflicts and the formation of a more widespread war in the Middle East.
The three signatory countries emphasize that the purpose of this agreement is to create collective deterrence and strengthen regional security. However, analysts believe that the path of implementing this pact is closely linked to the efforts of regional powers to contain the consequences of the confrontation between Iran and America.
Following Monday's negotiations in Tehran, Mohsen Rezaei, the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran, announced that ensuring the region's security must be the responsibility of the region's countries and must be carried out without the interference of foreign powers.
The possibility of Iran joining the Mecca defense pact
In response to a question about the possibility of Iran joining this agreement, the Pakistani army spokesman said that the provisions of the pact do not prohibit the membership of new countries.
Chaudhry stated in this regard: If there is a party that shares a common view with us on collective deterrence and regional peace, what obstacle is there? Everyone is strongly welcomed.
At the same time, he emphasized that the final decision in this regard rests with the political leaders of the three main signatory countries of the agreement.
The Pakistani army spokesman, also in response to a question about the possibility of sending more of the country's military forces to Saudi Arabia within the framework of the joint defense agreement, explained that such a decision depends on future developments and the opinion of the political leaders of the two countries.
Emphasizing Pakistan's commitment to defending Saudi Arabia and the holy sites of Muslims in Mecca and Medina, he said: We are not a party to the conflict in Yemen. This is an internal dispute in Yemen.
It is worth noting that the conflicts between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's armed forces have intensified again under the influence of the US war against Iran, and this issue has increased concerns about the expansion of the scope of war in the region.
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