Qatar, UAE, Pakistan leaders help persuade Trump to call off Iran strikes

Leaders from Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Pakistan played a key role in persuading U.S. President Donald Trump to halt planned military strikes on Iran, amid emerging diplomatic efforts to secure a preliminary agreement, according to U.S. officials and a diplomat briefed on the calls cited by Politico.

Soon after Trump posted on the morning of June 11 that he would hit Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT,” urgent calls were made by Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Pakistani defence chief Asim Munir, according to two U.S. administration officials and a diplomat briefed on the discussions. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the mediation.

The leaders reportedly assured Trump that a preliminary framework agreement with Tehran was already within reach, prompting him to reconsider immediate military action. According to one administration official, the assurances from regional partners were central to the decision to pause the planned strikes.

These countries have sway over Tehran and Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, Trump said June 11, and their assurance that a deal was near led him to walk back his attack plans, according to one of the administration officials.

Following the calls, Trump signalled progress on negotiations in a post on Truth Social, saying a deal could be signed as early as the weekend.

“We just made a great settlement of the war in Iran and we’ll be subject to finalization of documents,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office later on June 11. “We should get done over the next few days.”

However, Iranian officials offered a more cautious assessment. State media quoted foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei as saying that while large parts of a draft text had been finalised, Tehran would not compromise on its core positions.

“Iran has not yet reached a final conclusion on an agreement,” he said.

In a later post, Trump wrote that “discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail, approved by all parties involved, including the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Türkiye, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, and others."

By Sabina Mammadli