Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed optimism that “things were moving in the right direction” on ending the US-Iran war.

Speaking at China’s Great Hall of the People, the premier noted that the Gulf region was in crisis due to the war and that Pakistan had played a “sincere role to mediate between the US and Iran”. He lauded the role of the Chief of Defence Forces and the Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, who he said remained in touch with leadership from both sides.

“We hope and pray that peace will be restored, and lots of ground has already been covered; things are moving in the right direction,” PM Shehbaz said, thanking the Chinese leadership for their support to Pakistan’s mediation efforts.

“I think we have to really be together, so that the world at large is at peace and business as usual starts again, because this crisis has hit not only the economy in the region […] but the global community,” the premier asserted.