Pakistan's PM and Army Chief Head to Switzerland to Mediate U.S.-Iran Talks

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir, who are mediating end-of-war negotiations between the United States and Iran, are traveling to Switzerland to participate in face-to-face talks between the two nations.
According to reports from Bloomberg and other outlets on June 21 (local time), the Pakistani Foreign Ministry announced that Prime Minister Sharif and Army Chief Munir departed for Bürgenstock, Switzerland, the previous day to attend meetings regarding the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on ending the war between the U.S. and Iran.
The ministry added that Prime Minister Sharif is expected to hold bilateral meetings with both the U.S. and Iranian delegations during the summit.
The Pakistani Foreign Ministry emphasized that it would continue to support the U.S. and Iran in fulfilling the MOU.
In a statement released the previous day, the Pakistani Foreign Ministry explained, "Working-level talks are scheduled as a follow-up to the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)," adding, "In addition to the U.S. and Iranian delegations, mediating countries including Pakistan and Qatar will also participate."
Following the signing of the U.S.-Iran end-of-war MOU on the 17th, the two countries were set to begin follow-up main negotiations on the nuclear issue for 60 days starting from the 19th. However, the face-to-face talks were postponed to this day due to Israel's continued airstrikes on Lebanon.
A U.S. delegation, including Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, son-in-law of President Donald Trump, arrived in Switzerland recently, and Vice President JD Vance also departed for Switzerland the previous day.
The Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed that the Iranian negotiating delegation, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has arrived.
Pakistan stepped forward to act as a mediator in March, following the outbreak of the Middle East war triggered by U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran in late February.
Prime Minister Sharif and Army Chief Munir facilitated the first round of U.S.-Iran end-of-war talks, which were held in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, from April 11 to 12.
At that time, the U.S. and Iran failed to reach an agreement, and both countries did not attend the second round of talks, which had been expected to take place on the 21st of the same month.

(Photo: Getty Images)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.