Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has told Gulf governments that the next chapter of the war is partly in their hands, urging them to stop enabling US and Israeli military operations from their soil. His post on X, made over a month into the Iran-US conflict, placed the responsibility for the war’s continuation squarely on the choices Gulf leaders make. The message was both empowering and deeply threatening in its implications.
Gulf nations including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, and Oman have been embedded in the conflict through US military bases from which strikes against Iran have been launched. Tehran has retaliated with strikes in those same countries, making Gulf territory an active theater of war. Gulf governments are now under pressure to decide whether their military alliances with Washington are worth the ongoing cost of Iranian retaliation.
Pezeshkian was clear about Iran’s position: no preemptive attacks, but strong retaliation for strikes on Iranian infrastructure or economic centers. He told Gulf governments that allowing foreign forces to run the war from their lands makes them complicit in the conflict and invites continued Iranian military action. His message places the moral and strategic responsibility for the war’s trajectory on Gulf decision-makers.
Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts have been embraced by Tehran. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif confirmed that Pezeshkian views trust as the foundational requirement for peace talks to move forward. Pakistan’s foreign ministry has organized a multilateral ministerial meeting in Islamabad with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Turkey focused on de-escalation strategies.
Pakistan’s Ishaq Dar will lead the talks and facilitate meetings with Prime Minister Sharif. Iran has praised Islamabad’s mediation as genuine and constructive. The Islamabad meetings, combined with Iran’s pointed message to Gulf governments, mark a pivotal moment in the regional effort to end a war that has already dragged on far longer than many anticipated.