Saffronisation of the Indian Army continues as Lt Gen Dhiraj Seth is appointed as new Army Chief

By Agha Iqrar Haroon

History repeatedly demonstrates that sustainable peace emerges through dialogue, compromise, and mutual understanding. While military strength remains an essential component of national security, diplomacy often provides the most effective path to resolving disputes and preventing unnecessary human suffering and the true measure of statesmanship is not victory on the battlefield only but the ability to prevent a war before it begins and to play role to avert regional and international war threats.  

In an era marked by rising geopolitical tensions, U.S.-Iran de-escalation process, first through Islamabad Talks and now the emerging Islamabad Peace Deal offer an example of how leadership such as Filed Marshal Syed Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif can prevent disaster in the region. Furthermore, Pakistan’s role testifies that diplomacy, restraint, and strategic engagement can avert a potentially devastating regional conflict that could collapse not only regional rather global economy and risk billions of people living in South Asia and Middle East. At the center of these efforts stands Pakistan, whose civil and military leadership pursued mediation not for narrow political gain but in pursuit of regional stability and peace within the Muslim world. The role attributed to Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir in facilitating dialogue between Washington and Tehran has drawn attention from international observers and media outlets, many of which have highlighted Pakistan’s emergence as a diplomatic bridge during a period of heightened tensions.

The Middle East stood dangerously close to another major conflict. Any constant military confrontation between the United States and Iran could have triggered consequences far beyond the immediate parties involved. The strategic waterways of the Gulf, global energy markets, and the security architecture of the broader region would all have faced severe disruption. More importantly, such a conflict risked deepening divisions within the Muslim world and creating instability that could have persisted for years.

Against this backdrop, Pakistan’s diplomatic engagement assumed critical importance. Islamabad maintained active communication with all relevant stakeholders, emphasizing dialogue over confrontation and negotiation over escalation. Such efforts reflect a long-standing principle of Pakistani foreign policy: that peace and stability in neighboring regions directly contribute to Pakistan’s own security and prosperity.

Equally significant was the role played by Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Riyadh’s measured approach, strategic patience, and commitment to regional stability reportedly helped create the conditions necessary for meaningful dialogue. Crown Prince closely worked with Field Marshal and Saudi leadership remained focused on broader regional interests and the long-term goal of normalization among Muslim states. The role of Qatar, Egypt and Turkey was also significant and excellent cooperation among these countries demonstrates how coordinated diplomacy among influential Muslim countries can help resolve crises that might otherwise lead to conflict.

International media coverage has increasingly pointed to Syed Asim Munir’s mediation efforts as an important factor in the de-escalation process. Reports by Reuters, Forbes, Arab News, and Al Jazeera have highlighted Pakistan’s diplomatic outreach, back-channel communications, and efforts to facilitate direct engagement between Washington and Tehran. Such recognition reflects not only the significance of the moment but also Pakistan’s growing credibility as a responsible regional stakeholder capable of engaging constructively with diverse international actors.

Islamabad Talks were noteworthy because they represented an effort to bring adversaries together through direct engagement rather than coercion and US-Iran sat together within any go-between after almost 45 years. Islamabad Talks held in circumstances where Israel and India directly tried to sabotage the US-Iran meeting in Islamabad but Pakistan along with Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and Egypt did not stop and had a great breakthrough when Iran and United Stated decided to continue dialogue. I have reasons to believe that Islamabad Talks cost Pakistan a price as injection of terrorism from Afghan borders into Pakistan doubled after Islamabad Talks and adversaries such as Israel and India through Afghan Taliban tried to divert Pakistan’s attention from global role to domestic unrest. I consider violence in Azad Kashmir also a part of the same doctrine of India and Israel to keep busy Pakistan in mitigating terrorism so it could lose grip of international peacemaking. However, this strategy of adversaries failed and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir kept dealing successfully at both the arena—domestic as well as global. The rise in terrorism in Pakistan and violence in Azad Kashmir testified that nexus of Afghanistan-Israel-India would continue try to harm Pakistan. Credible information suggest that Israel and India also provided drones to Afghan Taliban to attack inside Pakistan through their proxies such as BLA/TTP and others.

Pakistan’s led peace processes inevitably attract critics, skeptics, and spoilers. Those invested in confrontation often view dialogue as weakness, while political rivals may seek to undermine diplomatic achievements for partisan reasons. Yet the pursuit of peace requires persistence, patience, and resilience. If regional actors remain committed to constructive engagement, the prospects for lasting stability become significantly stronger.

The Islamabad Peace Deal, if successfully concluded and sustained, may ultimately be remembered as an example of preventive diplomacy at its finest. It demonstrates that strategic foresight, regional cooperation, and responsible leadership can succeed where threats and coercion fail. More importantly, it reinforces a timeless lesson: the greatest victories are often those achieved without a war being fought.

Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir played the role that could not be possible by United Nations, showing how a single person can reshape the diplomacy when he has vision, confidence, purity in thoughts and selfless personality to bring peace for humanity.

It is also important to recognize that sensitive diplomatic initiatives require confidentiality and discretion. Successful mediation often depends on trust among participants and the willingness of intermediaries to place peace above publicity. For this reason, many aspects of such negotiations remain outside public view. What ultimately matters is not who receives credit but whether conflict is prevented and lives are saved.

In a world increasingly defined by conflict and polarization, efforts that bring adversaries to the negotiating table deserve recognition and support. Whether through Islamabad, Riyadh, Washington, or Tehran, every step that moves the region away from war and toward dialogue serves not only national interests but the broader cause of peace and humanity.