Pakistan Cautiously Optimistic About US-Iran Talks; New Countries May Join Makkah Defence Pact: DG ISPR

ISLAMABAD: Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has said that Pakistan is cautiously optimistic about efforts to facilitate dialogue between Iran and the United States.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with international news agency Reuters, the DG ISPR said that if there were no signs of positive progress, Field Marshal Asim Munir would not have visited Iran twice.

He said powerful elements opposed to peace efforts were always present, but Pakistan remained committed to diplomatic efforts aimed at reducing regional tensions.

Regarding the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, the DG ISPR said that additional countries sharing a common vision of collective defence and regional peace could become part of the arrangement. The decision to admit new members would rest with the political leadership of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.

He reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to defending Saudi Arabia and the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah. Any decision to deploy additional Pakistani troops to Saudi Arabia would depend on prevailing circumstances and consultations between the political leadership of both countries.

On Yemen, he said the conflict was an internal matter of Yemen and Pakistan was not a party to it. Pakistan’s commitment, he stressed, was focused on the security of Saudi Arabia and the protection of the Two Holy Mosques.

Addressing the security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the DG ISPR said there would be no large-scale military operations. Instead, intelligence-based operations (IBOs) against terrorist elements would be intensified.

3D Media | October 31, 2026