Amid the sharp escalation and the continued exchange of fire between the United States and Iran for the tenth day, a new diplomatic initiative is being launched led by Pakistan. In a conversation with the Associated Press, a senior Iranian official confirmed on Tuesday that a delegation from Tehran is expected to arrive in Pakistan tomorrow to participate in a series of meetings and mediation talks with local mediators.
The main goal is to discuss proposals for de-escalation and examine ways to stop the cycle of violence, after Iran’s Interior Minister, Eskandhar Momani, began preliminary meetings on the subject today. However, currently there is still much more to be seen about the possibility of reaching a new agreement that will stop the fighting.
The diplomatic efforts in Pakistan come amid of the complete collapse of the memorandum of understanding signed last month with the aim of ending the conflict. Despite the close contacts, the region continues to be turbulent: Iran attacked a fuel tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, forcing the crew to abandon it, while the United States continued another round of airstrikes against military targets in the Islamic Republic.
Ten consecutive nights of American attacks have not broken Tehran’s grip on the strait, through which about a fifth of the world’s crude oil and natural gas once passed. In light of the stopping of maritime traffic, damage to infrastructure and the rise in oil prices to almost $90 per barrel, the US State Department has warned of attacks against American interests abroad, and President Donald Trump has made it clear on social media that Iran will pay a heavy price for every American soldier killed. The talks are taking place shadowing heavy economic and military pressure and a surge in fuel prices in the United States ahead of the midterm elections.
Earlier today, the Financial Times reported that the Trump administration’s plan to overthrow the regime in Iran has returned to the negotiating table after diplomatic efforts failed. The move coincides with the tenth day of a large-scale campaign of strikes by the US Central Command against military and naval facilities in Iran, the Iranian president’s declaration of all-out war, and attacks in the Gulf region and the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported that Israel has transferred to the US Intelligence findings indicating that thousands of centrifuges were evacuated last fall to the underground facility known as Mount Pickaxe, following a wave of attacks on Iran’s main nuclear sites in June 2025. While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pressuring President Donald Trump to resume full-scale strikes to thwart Iranian reconstruction efforts, the president hinted last week that the site was a potential target for a US strike.