President Donald Trump is expected to meet with Pakistan’s head of the Army to talk while the United States considers supporting Israeli air attacks against Irana country with a cooperative and complex relationship with the Islamabad government.
The meeting between Trump and Munir de Pakistan is scheduled for the 1 PM, Washington time, on Wednesday in the White House Cabinet Roomaccording to the president’s public agenda.
As an army leader, Munir is considered widely as the most powerful person in Pakistan and has the last word in critical issues, from foreign policy to internal policy and economy.
Before the planned conversations, Pakistan had indicated that he could look for a mediator role in the Middle East conflict. Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, declared on Monday that Iran was willing to return to the negotiating table if Israel refrained from making new attacks, citing direct communication with his Iranian counterpart. “Our intention was always to see successful negotiations between the United States and Iran,” said Dar in Parliament.
Atomic links between Iran and Pakistan date back to decades. The United Nations Nuclear Control Agency and others have accused Abdul Qadeer Khan, The creator of the Atomistan Atomic Weapons Program, to supply Iran and other countries designs and centrifuger components for a nuclear program.
Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz Sharif declared in a publication on social networks during the weekend he had spoken with Iran’s president to express the unwavering solidarity of Pakistan with the brother Iranian people in the face of the unpaved aggression of Israel. On Wednesday, at a cabinet meeting, he declared that the international community must take immediate measures to end this war.
The state television television Pakistan Television Corp. confirmed the meeting on Wednesday night, citing people he did not identify. In his report, PTV described the “important and historical” meeting, indicating that it reflected a “growing trust” in Pakistan’s military leadership.
The political scientist Hassan Askari Rizvi said that the meeting would be the first of this type among an acting army chief and an American leader. “It is a kind of special gesture of President Trump.”
Trump met with his national security team for more than an hour on Tuesday, which revived speculation that the United States is about to join Israel’s attack against Iran. American weapons are considered crucial to achieve a more complete dismantling of the atomic program of the Islamic Republic than anything that Israel can do on its own.
Indrani Bagchi, executive director of the Ananta Center, a group of experts based in Delhi, said that historically the Pakistan army has been close to the United Stateswhich has often sought his help to manage security threats in the region.
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“The Trump administration is discovering new forms and new reasons to involve the Pakistani Army and Pakistan”said.
Pakistani military leader is expected to also meet With the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and the Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, on his trip to the United States, media in the country in southern Asia reported.
“The Pakistani army chief is a powerful figure, and this army chief is especially powerful. He has a very broad portfolio,” said Michael Kugelman, principal investigator of The Asia Pacific Foundation. He added that the meeting with Trump could address issues that go far beyond security, including topics such as cryptocurrencies and critical minerals.
Munir’s high profile visit to the White House will probably generate concern in India, since New Delhi’s relations with Washington are affected. India and Pakistan, neighbors with nuclear weapons, experienced in early May one of their most serious military clashes in years.
The conflict was triggered on April 22 with a deadly attack against tourists perpetrated by armed men who killed 26 civilians in the Kashmir managed by India. New Delhi described the massacre of terrorist act orchestrated by Pakistan. Islamabad leaders have denied their involvement.
Trump said he used trade as a lever to negotiate A high fire between the two rivals, an affirmation that India has constantly denied but that Pakistan has accepted.
The US president, speaking at the White House on Wednesday morning, said Munir was “extremely influential” In the cessation of the fighting last month, but did not specify what he intended to achieve with his meeting. “I love Pakistan,” he said, repeating that he helped negotiate a high fire.
But before the expected bilateral session could be held, Trump returned to Washington a day before, claiming that he should attend the crisis in the Middle East. Modi maintained a 35 -minute call with Trump on Tuesday night in the United States, according to India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, in a video statement. Modi told Trump that “at no time, at no level, he talked about issues such as the commercial agreement between India and the United States or mediation between India and Pakistan through the United States.”
So far there has been any information from the White House about the call.
The Indian authorities had initially announced that Modi would not attend the G-7. His country is not a member, but he was invited by the host, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
The Indian Prime Minister was one of the first foreign leaders to visit Trump after his return to the White House earlier this yearand both have expressed their enthusiasm for their good relationship. During several administrations, the United States has cultivated India’s position as a regional partner and a bulwark against a more assertive China.
However, trade negotiations between the United States and India have recently stumbled upon an obstacle, while New Delhi It continues to oppose the orders of the United States of mediation with Pakistan.
