Pakistan Denies Reports That Army Chief Visited Iran as Trump’s Representative

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi on Thursday rejected assertions that Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir traveled to Iran as an envoy of the United States or President Donald Trump. He clarified that the military leader’s trip formed part of Pakistan’s continuing efforts to mediate between Washington and Tehran.

Munir arrived in Tehran on Monday alongside Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi for a series of high-level meetings with Iranian officials. The visit was widely viewed as an extension of Pakistan’s diplomatic push to encourage both nations to return to the negotiating table and honor the interim peace agreement brokered by Islamabad in June.

Reuters reported this week, citing three Pakistani sources, that Trump spoke with Munir prior to the Tehran trip. One of the sources indicated that Washington had asked Pakistan to leverage its influence in persuading Iran to resume talks.

During a weekly press briefing, Andrabi stated: “I would also highlight that claims by certain quarters that the chief of army staff and the chief of defense forces visited Iran as envoy of President Trump or the US are misleading and factually incorrect.”

“As his visit was undertaken purely in the context and backdrop of Pakistan’s ongoing role as a mediator,” he added.

The spokesperson affirmed that Pakistan would persist with diplomatic engagement and back sincere initiatives aimed at reviving US-Iran peace negotiations. He emphasized Islamabad’s support for achieving a “comprehensive, just, and lasting” resolution to the conflict.

On Tuesday, Naqvi announced that Munir’s visit to Tehran had produced “significant progress,” noting that discussions with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian concluded on a “highly positive note.”

The Pakistani minister explained that talks with Pezeshkian centered on the Iran-US standoff, broader Middle East tensions, and measures needed from both sides to restore the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, with the goal of securing a comprehensive settlement.

Pakistan’s military added in a separate statement that the conversations addressed preventing further escalation, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and expediting an end to the conflict.

Alongside regional partners such as Qatar, Pakistan has been instrumental in facilitating the exchange of peace proposals between the US and Iran. Islamabad has consistently advocated for a diplomatic resolution, employing both direct and indirect channels to bring Washington and Tehran back to the negotiating table.

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