Even though U.S.-Iran talks collapsed this weekend, one country emerged as a winner on the world stage: Pakistan.
Pakistan, which led the shuttle diplomacy between the two countries in recent weeks and hosted the talks in Islamabad, has raised its profile with the effort in a way that may pay dividends for years to come.
“What they’ve done is put themselves on the map diplomatically,” said Elliott Abrams, who served as special representative for Iran during the first Trump administration. “I think they will continue to pass messages, and have earned a lot of goodwill.”
There are many reasons Pakistan managed to snag the spot as mediator: It has close ties with Iran and China — which helped it be seen as a neutral party. And Gulf countries that might have stepped in to mediate were themselves under attack.
But Pakistan’s courtship of President Donald Trump since he took office a little over a year ago has also played an important role. It’s been a wide-ranging campaign, and one that has shown a canny understanding of Trump’s ego.
“Pakistan wouldn’t be convening these talks if it didn’t have that strong relationship with Washington and that personal trust between its leaders and President Trump,” said Elizabeth Threlkeld, a former foreign service officer in Islamabad, now director of the South Asia Program at the Stimson Center, a Washington-based think tank.
That trust is a recent development for Islamabad. Not long ago, Pakistan was “in the penalty box” with the U.S., according to a retired State Department official who worked under both Republicans and Democrats, granted anonymity to discuss sensitive dynamics. Trump withheld military aid to Pakistan in his first term, saying it wasn’t doing enough to fight terrorism. President Joe Biden prioritized India, Islamabad’s decadeslong rival and fellow nuclear power.
But Pakistan has made a slew of moves to woo this White House via Trump’s passion projects.
That has run the gamut from capturing a wanted Islamic State attacker, to nominating Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize and securing a trade deal. Pakistan also was quick to join Trump’s Board of Peace. And Pakistan’s cryptocurrency regulator signed an agreement with a business linked to the Trump family’s cryptocurrency firm.