In the middle of all the fresh chaos in the Gulf, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stepped up to show Pakistan is firmly in the corner of its old friends — Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
On Tuesday, Shehbaz held back-to-back huddles in Islamabad with the Saudi and Qatari ambassadors. The backdrop? Missiles hitting a US base in Qatar just the night before — something that immediately raised alarm bells across the region.
First up was the Saudi envoy, Nawaf bin Saeed Al Malkiy. Shehbaz reassured him that Pakistan stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the Kingdom, no matter how tense things get. He even shared warm wishes for King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, saying Pakistan will keep working side by side with Riyadh to cool things down through talks, not weapons.
Then came the meeting with Qatar’s top diplomat in Islamabad, Ali Mubarak Ali Essa Al-Khater. Shehbaz told him Pakistan shares Qatar’s worries and prays for the safety of the Qatari people after the shocking attack. “We stand with our Qatari brothers and sisters,” he posted on X, adding that there’s no other way forward but to sit and talk.
Insiders say Shehbaz didn’t just stop at face-to-face talks — he was on the phone with both ambassadors right after the missiles hit. He reportedly pushed for calm and reminded everyone that shooting back and forth helps no one.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Foreign Office released a statement blasting any breach of a country’s sovereignty. It called on everyone in the region to chill, stick to international law, and quit pushing the Middle East closer to a meltdown.
While all this was unfolding, Israel dropped a surprise by saying it’s on board with a ceasefire plan that the Americans hammered out with Iran. But Tehran’s foreign minister quickly shot that down on TV, calling it spin and insisting Iran hasn’t signed any deal yet. For now, Iran says it’s ready to stop fighting — but only if Israel does too.
With so much confusion, one thing is clear: Pakistan wants peace and is sticking by its Gulf friends come what may.