Pakistan hopeful US-Iran ceasefire can be turned into permanent peace: Dar

• FM Dar says Pakistan's focus is now on making US-Iran ceasefire permanent after extended multiple times, now indefinite

• Says facilitated direct Iran–US talks for first time in 47 years, stressing efforts aim to convert ceasefire into permanent peace deal

 ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday expressed hope that the indefinitely extended ceasefire between the United States and Iran could be transformed into a permanent peace arrangement, following Pakistan’s facilitation of direct negotiations between the two sides for the first time in 47 years.

Addressing the 6th International Paigham-e-Islam Conference in Islamabad, the foreign minister said Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts were aimed at securing both direct negotiations and a ceasefire.

Deputy Prime Minister / Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar @MIshaqDar50 today addressed the second session of the Ulema Council Conference in Islamabad. He welcomed and lauded the participation of distinguished international and national Ulema and scholars, noting the… pic.twitter.com/6HOvQHaU3I

— Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (@DPM_PK) May 6, 2026

“First it happened, then it was extended, then extended a second time, then a third time,” he said, referring to the successive extensions of the ceasefire.

“At least the deaths of several hundred people a day — with the toll going into the thousands — has stopped,” he added.

US President Donald Trump has indefinitely extended what was initially a two-week ceasefire between the two countries, brokered with the assistance of Pakistan’s mediation. However, the conflict — along with its wider economic repercussions — remains unresolved.

The deputy prime minister said efforts were now focused on turning the ceasefire into a “permanent end to the war,” urging prayers for Pakistan’s diplomatic initiatives.

He also called on Muslim countries to strengthen unity, stressing that collective action would make their efforts more effective in resolving regional conflicts.

Dar noted Pakistan’s role in bringing the United States and Iran to direct negotiations for the first time in 47 years, saying Pakistan “played its full part” from February 28 to the present in responding to the crisis.

“After 47 years, we brought the US and Iran to sit down at the same table,” he said, contrasting it with earlier indirect negotiations facilitated by Oman.

He added that Pakistan had engaged with Iran over its strikes on US bases in other Middle Eastern countries, which had escalated regional tensions, reaffirming Islamabad’s efforts to de-escalate intra-regional hostilities as part of its broader commitment to the Muslim Ummah.

The conflict escalated after US and Israeli forces launched strikes against Iran on February 28. In response, Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz — a key global route for oil and gas exports — while US forces later imposed a blockade on Iranian ports.

The Islamabad talks, marking the highest-level engagement between the two sides since 1979, concluded without a formal agreement but also without a breakdown in dialogue.

As the Pakistan-brokered two-week ceasefire agreed on April 8 approached its deadline, US President Donald Trump announced on social media that he had decided to extend it indefinitely “upon the request of [Chief of Defence Forces] Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif”.

However, subsequent efforts to secure further face-to-face talks have not materialised, with Trump stating that the two sides could instead engage through telephone diplomacy if required. The Strait of Hormuz and Iranian ports remain closed.