UN Secretary-General António Guterres, speaking in Islamabad on Tuesday, 6 October 2026, called on all parties to the war between the US and the Islamic Republic to end the conflict, return to diplomacy and restore navigation rights on the basis of international law. The appeal comes as shipping in the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted and the US keeps Iran under a naval blockade.
According to the Pakistani newspaper Dawn and the Anadolu news agency, Guterres made the remarks at a joint press conference with Ishaq Dar, Pakistan's deputy prime minister and foreign minister. He praised Pakistan's role in creating the conditions for dialogue between Washington and Tehran, saying Islamabad's efforts had led to the Islamabad memorandum of understanding of 17 June, the ceasefire that followed and a framework for further negotiations. The UN Secretary-General described this role as "pivotal".
Pakistan's mediation between the US and the Islamic Republic
Ishaq Dar, according to Dawn, also highlighted Pakistan's diplomatic initiatives to reduce tensions, including hosting the Islamabad talks between the US and the Islamic Republic, and said diplomacy is the most effective way to resolve disputes.
Guterres arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday for a two-day visit and is scheduled to meet President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan's army chief. Pakistan's mediation in the war is at the centre of these talks.
The UN Secretary-General's visit comes as Masoud Pezeshkian, the Islamic Republic's president, on Monday called negotiations with the US meaningless, and Donald Trump has spoken of an imminent end to the war. US Central Command has also announced that in 12 weeks of the naval blockade of Iran it has destroyed 13 ships.
From Islamabad, Guterres called for an end to the war, a return to diplomacy and the restoration of freedom of navigation.
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