Iran · 25 August, 2026 · 3 min read
Asim Munir Meets Iran Leaders in Tehran to Revive Stalled US-Iran Talks
Pakistan army chief Asim Munir met Iranian President Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf in Tehran. Proposals aim to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and revive direct US-Iran talks.
Whether talks hinge on sanctions relief.
2 of 3 outlets skipped it: oman-Iran discuss a temporary Hormuz corridor and mine-clearing.
Al Jazeera was read line by line by the Watchdog: 3.8. See the score →
10outlets compared
Same story, two versions
tap a side to read it in full
Dawn
“Washington ‘ready to show flexibility’ on economic sanctions if Iran meets ‘certain conditions’”Read the original ↗
Al Jazeera
“many analysts say that Munir’s true test as mediator will lie in his ability to use his position as an influential military leader”Read the original ↗
Al Jazeera frames Munir’s test as securing Iranian military buy-in. Dawn frames it as sanctions relief conditional on Hormuz reopening.
Munir in Tehran
Pakistani Field Marshal Asim Munir spent Monday moving through Tehran’s power corridors, meeting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, as he sought to revive stalled US-Iran talks that had been deadlocked for six months.
““It is better that we bring the war to an end now as we are in a position of power and dignity,””
Al Jazeera reported that Munir’s mediation test would be whether he could convince Iranian counterparts “in olive uniforms” to agree to a return to talks with Washington, even as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told a gathering of doctors in Tehran that “It is better that we bring the war to an end now as we are in a position of power and dignity.”A
The same Al Jazeera account said that hours later, on August 21, Major-General Ali Abdollahi promised “revolutionary, crushing, regret-inducing and devastating” responses to any American miscalculation, underscoring a gap between the president and Iran’s military leadership that Munir would need to navigate.A
An Anadolu Ajansı report said Munir was discussing “new” proposals with Iranian officials during his ongoing visit to revive stalled direct talks, with Pakistani sources telling the outlet that the proposals focus on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and reviving long-stalled direct talks between Washington and Tehran.
Anadolu Ajansı also said the trip came after US President Donald Trump warned of economic consequences for Iranian trade partners and that a 60-day deadline under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 17 had expired last week without a final agreement.
Sanctions and threats
As Munir worked in Tehran, Al Jazeera said the region and the world were bracing for US President Donald Trump’s threatened “economic D-Day” sanctions against Iran, accompanied by a threatened punishment for all countries that continue to trade with Tehran.A
Al Jazeera reported that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unveiled “Operation Economic Outcast“, a sweeping sanctions campaign targeting Iran’s digital assets, gold, aviation, technology and shipping networks, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth kept the option of renewed strikes open with “If we need to use kinetic strikes, we’ll use them.”A
In parallel, Anadolu Ajansı reported that Washington and Tehran had “tacitly” agreed not to launch new hostilities despite the expiry of the 60-day deadline, while Pakistan’s army media wing said Munir would “focus on promoting efforts towards peaceful, lasting and comprehensive resolution of the conflict in the Middle East” during the visit.
An Anadolu Ajansı account also said Munir’s discussions included reopening the Strait of Hormuz and reviving direct talks, and that Pakistan remained in constant consultation with both Washington and Tehran as it tried to break the longstanding deadlock.
Al Jazeera added that Munir traveled to Tehran days after taking a phone call from Donald Trump, which Pakistani officials said produced “comprehensive discussions” on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ending the war, with Iranian officials “appreciated Pakistan’s constructive role and sincere efforts”.A
What’s at stake
The mediation push centered on the Strait of Hormuz and the conditions for returning to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, with Anadolu Ajansı saying the US and Iran had stalled over disagreements on security guarantees and freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
““highly fruitful” and saying it had produced “highly valuable diplomatic achievements””
Dawn reported that progress during visits by Field Marshal Asim Munir and Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al-Busaidi “may have opened the first potentially workable pathway towards de-escalation in the Gulf,” while also noting that “fundamental differences persist between Iran and the United States.”D
Dawn said Iranian reaction to Munir’s visit was “highly fruitful,” quoting Seyed Mehdi Tabatabaei, deputy for communications and information at the Iranian president’s office, describing it as “highly fruitful” and saying it had produced “highly valuable diplomatic achievements.”D
In the same Dawn account, the paper said the CDF’s meeting with Gen Mohsen Rezaei, the Supreme Leader’s representative on the Supreme National Security Council, was “particularly significant in testing whether the security side in Tehran was also prepared to join the renewed process.”D
Dawn further reported that Washington’s sanctions relief was discussed in terms of “certain conditions,” while it said Tehran’s message was that Iran remains prepared to return to the understanding formalised under Islamabad MoU “provided Washington first addresses what Tehran considers its violations of the memorandum, and returns to implementing the understanding.”D