United States said to have sent Iran a plan to end the Middle East war
It was unclear how widely the plan, transmitted through Pakistan, was shared among Iranian officials and whether Iran would accept it as the basis for negotiations. It is not clear whether Israel, which bombed Iran together with the USA, agrees with this proposal.
Also Read | US expected to send thousands more troops to Middle East, sources say
But the implementation of the plan showed that the administration is stepping up its efforts to end a war that is now in its fourth week and has involved many other countries.
The New York Times has not seen a copy of the plan, but the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive details, shared some general outlines of the plan, saying it was aimed at Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs.
Israel and the United States targeted Iran’s ballistic missiles, launchers, production facilities and nuclear program in the bombing campaign that started on February 28. US and Israeli leaders have vowed to never allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons.
But Iran has continued to fire missiles at Israel and neighboring Arab countries and still has 440 kilograms of highly enriched uranium on its soil. One of the officials said that sea routes were also discussed in the plan. Since the start of the war, Iran has effectively prevented most Western ships from safely passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway into and out of the Persian Gulf, cutting off global oil and natural gas supplies and causing prices to soar.
Also Read | Iran’s ‘nuclear’ option
For now, there is no indication that the war will stop any time soon; Israeli officials said they expected this situation to continue for weeks. In a statement, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt acknowledged diplomacy was on the way, but said: “As President Trump and his negotiators explore this newfound possibility of diplomacy, Operation Epic Rage continues unabated to achieve the military objectives identified by the commander in chief and the Pentagon.”
Pakistani army chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir has emerged as the key interlocutor between the United States and Iran, the officials said, adding that Egypt and Türkiye have encouraged the Iranians to take constructive action. Munir is believed to have maintained close ties with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, putting him in a position to convey messages between the warring sides.
An Iranian official and a Pakistani official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive communications, said he recently reached out to Mohammad Bagher Galibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament and former Revolutionary Guard commander, to suggest that Pakistan host talks between Iran and the United States.
In 2025, Munir met twice with President Donald Trump, who showered him with praise, calling him his “favorite marshal.”
On Tuesday, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on social media that his country “fully supports ongoing efforts to continue dialogue to end the war in the Middle East.”
“Subject to the agreement of the United States and Iran, Pakistan is ready and honored to host to facilitate meaningful and decisive negotiations for a comprehensive settlement of the ongoing conflict.” he wrote.
Iran may have difficulty responding quickly to U.S. aid. Senior Iranian officials have difficulty communicating within the country and worry that Israel could bomb them if they meet in person, the officials added.
On the first day of the war, Israel struck the Iranian leadership compound in Tehran, killing Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and many other senior officials. It is not yet known who has the authority to decide on diplomacy, war and peace.
But the White House’s eagerness to negotiate suggests that Trump will be willing to leave the current regime in place, at least for now, albeit in a weakened and more flexible state. He and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remained undecided on whether demands for war involved regime change.
