At the UN General Debate on Sept. 25, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif
urged the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al‑Mandeb to remain open, calling them lifelines
for the global economy and saying they must not become arenas of confrontation.
He said Pakistan helped broker US‑Iran talks in Islamabad after February’s
US‑Israel‑Iran clashes that spread across the Middle East, producing an
Islamabad meeting and an Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, and expressed
regret at recently renewed regional escalation. He said Pakistan chooses dialogue
over confrontation.
