Briefing: Israel Is Indirectly Represented In Pakistan Talks With Iran, Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Tells American Jewish Congress

Briefing: Israel Is Indirectly Represented In Pakistan Talks With Iran

Khurshid Kasuri offers rare insight into U.S.–Iran diplomacy, Pakistan's role, and Iran's negotiating posture. This was the first time a former Pakistani Foreign Minister has briefed an American Jewish organization.

A former Pakistani foreign minister who played a covert role in relaying messages between the United States and Iran years ago says Israel is now indirectly represented in the talks in Islamabad brokered by Pakistan.

Khurshid Kasuri, Pakistan's foreign minister between 2002 and 2007, helped Washington and Tehran quietly discuss Iran's problematic nuclear program. Leaked diplomatic cables in 2011 show that Kasuri's boss at the time, then Pakistani President Musharraf, a U.S. ally, wanted Iran to give up its nuclear program.

Kasuri spoke with American Jewish Congress President Daniel Rosen and Chairman Jack Rosen on April 21 in a Special Briefing on the U.S.-Iran Talks in Islamabad. This was the first time that a former Pakistani foreign minister briefed an American Jewish organization.

Former Minister Kasuri said Israel is involved in the Pakistani mediation through the United States, and that its interests are being watched by Washington. He said he was not being flippant when he said the United States would not do anything that endangered Israel's security. His formulation was that Israel is "represented in every way" through the American side, even if it is not physically at the table in the Pakistani capital.

Kasuri suggested that during his time, when the issue of Iran's terror proxies that target the United States, Israel, and Arab partners was raised, the regime in Iran called these militias tools in its "forward defense" strategy. In his view, there are people in Iran who do want to talk to the United States, including less radical elements, and Pakistan has been in contact with them.

Kasuri said this is not a new role for Pakistan. He recalled that Pakistan had previously passed messages between the United States and Iran, and that he himself had been involved in such exchanges. Pakistan is a Cold War American ally that helped Dr. Henry Kissinger secretly pass through the Pakistani capital to China in 1972 to open diplomatic relations with that nation. His bottom line: Iran would like to come to the talks, but internal divisions in Tehran and what the Iranians see as inflammatory public messaging from Washington may have made that harder.

Kasuri offered interesting context about Gulf Arab grievances and whether they are represented in the U.S-Iran talks in Islamabad, arguing that Pakistan would ensure that Arab grievances were on the table for the Iranians to address. He said Pakistan cannot ignore Gulf concerns because millions of Pakistanis work in Gulf states and their remittances are vital to Pakistan's economy.

His overall view: Iran wanted to negotiate then, and he believes it wants to negotiate now as well. But the dilemma, as he framed it, is that the entrenched regime does not want change if that change comes at its own expense.