Dual approach

WITH regard to resolving the US-Iran stand-off, two distinct approaches are being pursued simultaneously. The more mature track involves Pakistan and other regional countries that are trying to revive the Islamabad MoU and ensure a peaceful denouement to this crisis.

In this regard, Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir was in Tehran on Monday for talks with the Iranian leadership. The other — more combative — approach involves the US ramping up financial pressure on Iran through sanctions and what it calls an “economic onslaught”. The US on Monday announced a fresh set of sanctions targeting Iran under the imaginatively titled ‘Operation Economic Outcast’.

Field Marshal Munir met the Iranian president, as well as other top leaders, in Tehran. One of the positive outcomes of this interaction was Iran’s affirmation that it remains committed to the Islamabad MoU. However, as the Iranian national security chief said, “we distrust America”. This mutual distrust remains the biggest obstacle in operationalising the MoU. The reality is that America’s ramping up sanctions on Iran will do little to build bridges with Tehran. If anything, it will harden attitudes there.

It should be remembered that Iran has survived punishing US sanctions for nearly half a century, and while the new curbs may increase the pain, they are unlikely to make Tehran yield. Moreover, there is little appetite amongst Iran’s major trading partners, particularly China, to toe Washington’s line. The announcement of new economic curbs is also an admission from the US that its strategy of defeating Iran on the battlefield has failed.

The fact that the Iranians are willing to engage with mediators, and are still interested in reviving the Islamabad MoU, means that a peaceful way out of this crisis can be found. After the CDF’s visit, the Omani foreign minister was in Tehran yesterday to discuss the situation in the Strait of Hormuz. If the Trump administration goes ahead with its ill-advised plan to further isolate Iran economically, or if it considers restarting military action, it will undoubtedly attract a matching response from Iran. Very few states in the region want a return to hostilities.

Therefore, both sides, particularly the US, need to take advantage of the renewed diplomatic push, and attempt to implement the salient features of the MoU. The US should drop its hostile rhetoric and attempt to reach a genuine understanding with Iran.

Washington’s aggression against the Islamic Republic has proved a disaster, and it would be best for the US to quickly exit the quagmire with whatever remains of its tattered honour. The Iranians, meanwhile, should restore the free flow of marine traffic through Hormuz, and rebuild damaged ties with their Arab Gulf neighbours.

Published in Dawn, August 26th, 2026