Islamabad: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal Chaudhry has said that Pakistan is honoured to host the Islamabad Peace Talks and to play its part in bringing the warring sides from the battlefield to the negotiating table.

In a statement issued on X, Ahsan Iqbal wrote ‘I pay tribute to the leadership of Pakistan, Iran, and the United States, and to all brotherly countries whose constructive engagement has made this opportunity for peace possible. Our effort has been guided by a simple conviction: that mistrust must yield to dialogue, restraint must prevail over escalation, and wisdom must triumph over the impulse for war. Continued conflict would be catastrophic not only for the region, but for the global community. This crisis is no longer a regional matter. Its economic aftershocks are already being felt from Australia to the United States, across all 193 nations, through inflationary pressures, disrupted energy supplies, volatile markets, and deepening uncertainty. Should the conflict persist, millions more people may be pushed into poverty’.

Ahsan Iqbal said that the burden of failure will not fall on the combatants alone; it will be borne by ordinary men, women, and children across the world through insecurity, inflation, and instability.

We therefore sincerely hope these talks succeed. Their success will matter not only for regional peace, but for the economic security and future of millions of families worldwide. In the end, history will not remember who sounded the toughest; it will remember those who showed the wisdom and statesmanship to prevent a wider war.