ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said on Monday his “hunch” was that the Iran war would not break out again, citing opposition within the United States to becoming directly involved in another conflict in the Middle East.
Pakistan has positioned itself as a mediator since the war erupted following joint US-Israeli strikes on Tehran on Feb. 28, triggering Iranian retaliation and a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global energy corridor through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas passes.
“Israel very strongly desires that the war breaks out again and it is fought by America on its side,” Asif said in a conversation with Geo News’ “Capital Talk” program, pointing out that public opinion in the US was against it.
“I am not an expert in diplomacy, but my hunch says that this war will not happen again,” he added.
Despite his comments, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned that military action remains possible if diplomacy fails.
Trump said on Monday he had paused plans for a major military assault on Iran at the request of Gulf Arab allies, who feared broader regional escalation, but added that US forces remained prepared to launch a “full, large-scale assault” if an acceptable agreement was not reached.
“There seems to be a very good chance that they can work something out,” he said at a White House event. “If we can do that without bombing the hell out of them, I’d be very happy.”
Iran has repeatedly rejected US proposals it says undermine its sovereignty, while insisting negotiations do not amount to surrender.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei confirmed ongoing exchanges with Washington through Pakistani mediation and said Tehran had conveyed its concerns to the US.
Asif pointed to the reluctance among the American public to support another conflict in the region.
“Wars are fought when the public stands behind them,” he said. “When the public does not support them, wars are not fought.”
The nearly three-month conflict has rattled global energy markets, disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and heightened fears of a broader regional war involving Gulf states and armed groups aligned with Tehran.
