Pakistan Army Chief Discusses Israel-Iran Conflict With Trump

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(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump met Pakistan’s army chief Wednesday in Washington as the US considers supporting Israeli airstrikes on Iran, a country with a cooperative and complex relationship with the government in Islamabad.

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As the leader of the military, Pakistan’s Asim Munir is widely seen as the most powerful person in Pakistan, wielding the final word on critical matters from foreign policy to internal politics and the economy.

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The meeting came as the capital was fixated on speculation that the US may join Israel’s attacks aimed at disabling Iran’s nuclear program. Trump said multiple times he hadn’t made a decision on the issue, but signaled he had discussed it with Munir. 

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“They know Iran very well, better than most, and they’re not happy about anything,” Trump said after meeting Munir at the White House. “They see what’s going on. And he agreed with me,” Trump said, without explaining what he meant. 

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Ahead of the planned discussions, Pakistan had signaled it may seek a role as a mediator in the Middle East conflict.

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Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Monday that Iran was willing to return to the negotiating table if Israel refrains from further strikes, citing direct communication with his Iranian counterpart. “Our intention was always to see successful negotiations between the United States and Iran,” Dar said in parliament.

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Atomic ties between Iran and Pakistan date back for decades. The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog and others have accused Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of Pakistan’s atomic weapons program, of supplying Iran and others with centrifuge designs and components for a nuclear program. 

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Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a social media post over the weekend that he had spoken with Iran’s president “to express Pakistan’s unwavering solidarity with the brotherly people of Iran in the face of Israel’s unprovoked aggression.” He told a cabinet meeting on Wednesday that “the international community should immediately make efforts to put an end to this war.”

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State-run Pakistan Television Corp. confirmed the meeting late on Wednesday, citing people it did not identify. In its report, PTV described the meeting as “important and historic,” saying it reflected “growing confidence” in Pakistan’s military leadership.

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Political scientist Hassan Askari Rizvi said the meeting would be the first of its kind between a sitting army chief and US leader. “It’s a kind of special gesture given by President Trump.”

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Trump gathered with his national security team Wednesday, following a similar meeting that lasted more than an hour on Tuesday, fueling fresh speculation that the US is on the verge of joining Israel’s attack on Iran. American weapons are seen as crucial to achieving a more complete dismantling of the Islamic Republic’s atomic program than anything Israel can do alone. 

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Indrani Bagchi, chief executive officer at Ananta Centre, a Delhi-based think tank, said that historically the Pakistan army has been close to the US, which has often sought its help to manage security threats in the region.

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“The Trump administration is discovering new ways or new reasons to engage the Pakistan army and Pakistan,” she said.