An Iranian official began a series of meetings with mediators in Pakistan on Tuesday, at a time when the interim agreement with the United States is showing signs of collapse.
Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni met with Pakistani Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to two officials who requested anonymity.
Authorities did not immediately release any details about the meeting.
Minister Momeni is also expected to meet with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif later today.
This came after Pakistani government sources said on Tuesday that Islamabad and Doha had put forward a new proposal aimed at de-escalating tensions and returning to negotiations aimed at ending the war between the United States and Iran.
The sources explained that Pakistan and Qatar conveyed to the United States and Iran a joint proposal aimed at reducing the escalation against the backdrop of the escalating clashes between the two sides in recent days.
She added that the joint proposal calls on both sides to return to the status quo ante July 9, noting that this would be a “first step” towards resuming negotiations aimed at ending the war.
She stated that the proposal includes reaching a two-week ceasefire, and Iran “opening the Strait of Hormuz immediately,” in exchange for the United States lifting the naval blockade imposed on Iran and the sanctions related to oil sales.
She indicated that if Washington and Tehran agree to the proposal, they are expected to return immediately to the negotiating table, stressing that implementing a ceasefire in southern Lebanon will also be among the most prominent issues on the agenda.
The sources added that the mediators are “optimistic” about receiving positive responses from both sides, and about the possibility of returning to negotiations “very soon.”
Earlier on Tuesday, the US news site Axios quoted two sources as saying that Pakistan, Qatar, Egypt and other mediators had proposed a 10-day ceasefire between the United States and Iran.
In recent days, the United States has been launching successive waves of strikes on sites inside Iran, while Tehran has been launching attacks on what it says are American ships, facilities and military bases in a number of countries in the region.
This comes despite Washington and Tehran signing a memorandum of understanding on June 18, 2026, which included a ceasefire and the start of negotiations to reach a broader agreement.
But on July 8, US President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire over, after Iran targeted three ships in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting Washington to resume its strikes inside Iran, amid escalating responses from Tehran in the region.
Washington demands guarantees of freedom and security of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran insists on imposing a mechanism to regulate the passage of ships through the strategic waterway, exacerbating fears of disruption to oil and gas exports from the region.
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