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Pakistan Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir has brokered a secret deal for a de-facto ceasefire between Iran and Saudi Arabia in exchange for facilitating the export of Iranian oil off the books, according to The Times of Israel.
The newspaper reported that Munir set up a Pakistan-Iran joint venture with IRGC chief Ahmad Vahidi to facilitate the discreet export of Iranian oil through Pakistan in exchange of Iran stopping its attacks on Saudi Arabia.
The agreement was struck in late March when the US-Israeli war on Iran was in full swing, three sources told the newspaper.
The timeline fits with the evolution of the conflict. While Iran attacked Saudi Arabia early in the conflict, striking at its energy infrastructure, it stopped attacks by the end of March and has not fired on the kingdom in weeks even as it has lately struck its neighbours —Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan— every day.
The Munir-Vahidi joint venture has generated massive dividends for them, according to ToI.
In the ongoing West Asia crisis, Pakistan has emerged as the principal mediator. It brokered the US-Iran ceasefire in March, and was the driving force behind the memorandum of understanding (MoU) that Trump and Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian signed last month.
With the deal with Iran that essentially served as a Saudi-Iran ceasefire, Munir has sought to boost its relationship with Saudi Arabia in a way where the kingdom owes to him and becomes more reliant on Pakistan, according to ToI.
While Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have always been close, the relationship has consistently deepened lately. Last year, Pakistan signed the mutual defence agreement with Saudi Arabia under which it has deployed thousands of soldiers and dozens of warships and fighter planes in the kingdom.
With such an arrangement, in addition to billions of dollars in salaries, contracts, and investments, Pakistan has also become central to Saudi Arabia's security, meaning that the kingdom is already reliant on Pakistan to an extent.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar have also reportedly cut similar cash-for-ceasefire deals with Iran.
The newspaper reported that Munir set up a Pakistan-Iran joint venture with IRGC chief Ahmad Vahidi to facilitate the discreet export of Iranian oil through Pakistan in exchange of Iran stopping its attacks on Saudi Arabia.
The agreement was struck in late March when the US-Israeli war on Iran was in full swing, three sources told the newspaper.
The timeline fits with the evolution of the conflict. While Iran attacked Saudi Arabia early in the conflict, striking at its energy infrastructure, it stopped attacks by the end of March and has not fired on the kingdom in weeks even as it has lately struck its neighbours —Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan— every day.
The Munir-Vahidi joint venture has generated massive dividends for them, according to ToI.
In the ongoing West Asia crisis, Pakistan has emerged as the principal mediator. It brokered the US-Iran ceasefire in March, and was the driving force behind the memorandum of understanding (MoU) that Trump and Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian signed last month.
Munir wants leverage over Saudi Arabia with Iran deal: Report
With the deal with Iran that essentially served as a Saudi-Iran ceasefire, Munir has sought to boost its relationship with Saudi Arabia in a way where the kingdom owes to him and becomes more reliant on Pakistan, according to ToI.
While Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have always been close, the relationship has consistently deepened lately. Last year, Pakistan signed the mutual defence agreement with Saudi Arabia under which it has deployed thousands of soldiers and dozens of warships and fighter planes in the kingdom.
With such an arrangement, in addition to billions of dollars in salaries, contracts, and investments, Pakistan has also become central to Saudi Arabia's security, meaning that the kingdom is already reliant on Pakistan to an extent.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar have also reportedly cut similar cash-for-ceasefire deals with Iran.
