Pakistani premier arrives in Switzerland for US-Iran talks

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Switzerland on Sunday morning to attend technical-level negotiations between the United States and Iran aimed at ending the armed conflict in the Middle East, local media reported. Sharif is accompanied by Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir for the talks in Burgenstock, which will focus on implementing the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding signed by both nations earlier this week.

Implementation Talks

The delegations from Iran, Qatar, and the United States will join Pakistani officials for the first formal engagement between Washington and Tehran since the signing of the Islamabad MoU on Wednesday. "Pakistan will continue to support and advance the implementation of the understandings reached between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Diplomatic Context

The Switzerland meeting follows direct talks hosted by Pakistan on April 12-13 — the highest-level engagement between the two countries since they severed diplomatic ties in 1979 — after Islamabad secured a ceasefire on April 8. US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed the agreement that established the framework for the current negotiations, which were originally scheduled for Friday before being postponed.

On the sidelines of the Burgenstock talks, Sharif is expected to hold bilateral meetings with delegations from Iran, Qatar, Switzerland, and the United States, which the Foreign Ministry said will reaffirm Pakistan's "enduring commitment to dialogue and durable peace in the region." The 60-day negotiation period established under the Islamabad agreement began with this week's technical discussions.