<\/p>\n
Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir arrived in Tehran on Friday evening as part of ongoing mediation efforts aimed at bringing the Iran-US war to a conclusion.<\/p>\n
On arrival, the army chief was \u201creceived and warmly welcomed\u201d by Iran\u2019s Minister for Interior Eskandar Momeni, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).<\/p>\n
The military\u2019s media wing added that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi was also present at the reception.<\/p>\n
The CDF will discuss US-Iran talks, regional peace and other important issues during the visit, the sources said. He will also meet senior Iranian officials.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the day, security sources said the army chief had departed for Iran.<\/p>\n \n <\/a>\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n US Secretary of State Marco Rubio commented about CDF Munir\u2019s visit to Tehran, saying that the US was in \u201cconstant communication with him [and] the highest levels of our government are constantly talking to him\u201d.<\/p>\n He also praised Pakistan for doing an \u201cadmirable job\u201d trying to mediate a peace deal between Washington and Tehran.<\/p>\n \u201cThe primary interlocutor on this has been Pakistan and continues to be and they\u2019ve done a, you know, I think an admirable job. And that\u2019s what we continue to work through,\u201d Fox News<\/em> quoted<\/a> Rubio as saying.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, other countries \u2026 may have their own situation going on. We talk to all of them. But I would just say that the primary country we\u2019ve been working with on all of this is Pakistan, and that remains the case,\u201d he told reporters in Sweden.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, earlier today, Tasnim News Agency<\/em> reported that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi held a meeting with Iran\u2019s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to review proposals for resolving disputes, while on an official visit to Tehran.<\/p>\n \n <\/a>\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n The visit comes amid ongoing Pakistani efforts<\/a> to mediate between the US and Iran, after plans<\/a> for a second round of negotiations in Islamabad fell through<\/a>.<\/p>\n The first round of historic direct US-Iran talks<\/u><\/a> was held in Islamabad on April 11 and 12, following a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire on April 8. It had ended without an agreement, but also without a breakdown<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n US President Donald Trump later called off<\/a> a planned visit of US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and adviser Jared Kushner to travel to Islamabad for a second round of talks with Iran. However, he extended<\/a> the ceasefire indefinitely \u201cupon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif\u201d.<\/p>\n Pakistan has stepped up its diplomatic efforts to break the deadlock, sending the interior minister to Tehran on Wednesday for the second time<\/a> in less than a week to resuscitate negotiations. He had previously met<\/a> Iran\u2019s president, parliament speaker and foreign minister over the weekend.<\/p>\n The CDF previously visited<\/a> Iran for three days last month alongside Naqvi, where he held a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and other officials. Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) described the visit as part of \u201congoing mediation efforts\u201d for de-escalation between Iran and the US.<\/p>\n Diplomatic sources said Pakistan was continuing to relay messages between Tehran and Washington, but differences over Iran\u2019s nuclear programme, sanctions relief, the Strait of Hormuz, and wider regi\u00adonal security concerns linked to Teh\u00adran\u2019s missile capabilities and allied armed groups continued to impede progress.<\/p>\n The latest round of contacts is taking place under heightened pressure from the US and its Middle East allies. US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said<\/a> talks in Iran were in the final stages, and also threatened to resume strikes if a deal is not reached in a \u201climited timeframe\u201d.<\/p>\n Iran, meanwhile, warned of confrontation beyond the Middle East in the case of a US attack but also insisted that all paths were open to avert the resumption of hostilities.<\/p>\n While negotiations currently remain stalled, the Foreign Office (FO) said<\/a> at the end of April that Pakistan\u2019s diplomatic efforts are continuing, with Islamabad maintaining its role as a facilitator between the two sides despite the apparent impasse.<\/p>\n FO spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said<\/a> in a press briefing on Friday that PM Shehbaz would be undertaking a visit to China from May 23-26, in which the US-Iran war would be on the agenda for discussion.<\/p>\n However, he said he could neither confirm not deny reports about a \u201chigh-level delegation\u201d visiting Iran from Pakistan.<\/p>\n Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said<\/a> on Wednesday that Tehran had received a new US proposal and was currently examining it.<\/p>\n \u201cWe received the points of view of the American side and we are currently examining them,\u201d he told state television.<\/p>\n He reiterates Iran\u2019s demands in talks to end the war, including the release of Iranian assets frozen abroad and an end to the US blockade<\/a> on Iranian ports.<\/p>\n The Strait of Hormuz \u2014 the world\u2019s most important<\/a> waterway for oil shipments \u2014 has been a central point in the US-Iran war.<\/p>\n After the US and Israel attacked<\/a> Iran on Feb 28, Tehran responded by shutting down the strait and later announced it would charge vessels using the maritime route. In April, the US blockaded<\/a> Iranian ports to stop its oil exports and returned over 30 ships leaving Iranian ports.<\/p>\n Europe and the rest of the world appears anxious for a swift, diplomatic end to the war, which has ravaged the Middle East and crippled global shipping, causing a fuel crunch<\/a> across the globe.<\/p>\n Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, however, has claimed, \u201cNo one sails from the Strait of Hormuz to anywhere in the world without the permission of the United States Navy.\u201d<\/p>\n