UNITED NATIONS: United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has praised Pakistan’s support for the UN and its peace and development agenda, particularly Islamabad’s mediation efforts and contribution as a current member of the Security Council.
Guterres made the remarks during a farewell call with Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, who is set to become Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary.
The UN chief congratulated the ambassador on his appointment and wished him success, while appreciating Pakistan’s continued support for the UN and multilateralism.
Ambassador Asim Iftikhar thanked Guterres and his team for their support during his tenure and commended the secretary-general’s leadership and principled advocacy for multilateralism, the UN Charter and international law.
United Nations Secretary General @antonioguterres has appreciated #Pakistan‘s leading role and strong support for the @UN and its peace and development agenda@ForeignOfficePk @PakistanPR_UN @PakistanUN_NY #RadioPakistan #News https://t.co/btOAWaRBxg pic.twitter.com/xKwDlDAAIC
— Radio Pakistan (@RadioPakistan) September 30, 2026
The meeting concluded the ambassador’s tenure as Pakistan’s permanent representative, during which Pakistan continued its active diplomatic role at the UN through its elected Security Council membership and efforts to promote dialogue and the peaceful resolution of international disputes.
Pakistan is the key mediator between the US and Iran after helping secure a ceasefire on April 8. Later, Pakistan hosted high-level US and Iranian delegations for talks in Islamabad on April 12 and 13.
Pakistan committed to end US-Iran war
On Wednesday, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Islamabad was “completely focused” on mediating an end to the war between the United States and Iran through dialogue and diplomacy.
“Pakistan is playing the role of a sincere and honest mediator between Iran, our neighbourly country, and the United States,” Prime Minister Sharif told reporters at the United Nations.
Prime Minister Sharif said he signed the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in June with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and US President Donald Trump.
“Unfortunately, events after that got a bit unpredictable, but Pakistan is completely focused. We have not lost hope; we are absolutely determined that we will further make efforts and make progress to de-escalate the situation,” the Prime Minister added.
Pakistan has repeatedly urged a return to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the US and Iran, maintaining that dialogue and diplomacy were the only way to resolve the months-long conflict.
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The Pakistan-brokered Islamabad MoU, signed in June, provides the framework for ending the US-Iran conflict and pursuing a negotiated settlement.
Under the Islamabad MoU, Iran and the United States committed to halt military operations, reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping and negotiate a comprehensive agreement covering Iran’s nuclear programme, US sanctions and a permanent ceasefire within 60 days.
Pakistan and Qatar later co-mediated the first round of high-level talks in Lucerne, Switzerland, on June 21. The meeting was attended by Vance and Ghalibaf.
Pakistan is making efforts to revive talks under the Islamabad MoU framework to permanently end the conflict through diplomacy and dialogue.
