UN chief praises Pakistan’s peace initiatives to ‘reduce tensions and create space for dialogue’

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres lauded Pakistan's efforts at the UN Security Council to enhance mechanisms for the peaceful resolution of disputes. He highlighted the initiative's significance during a period of escalating conflicts across the Middle East and globally.

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As conflicts escalate across the Middle East and beyond, military solutions cannot deliver lasting peace.

Addressing an open debate, Guterres presented recommendations to make diplomacy, mediation, and conflict prevention more effective tools for international peace and security. He noted that military solutions cannot achieve lasting peace, especially as conflicts intensify. "The situation is getting out of control. It’s teetering on the edge of the unimaginable," he warned, urging restraint and a renewed commitment to diplomacy.

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The situation is getting out of control. It’s teetering on the edge of the unimaginable.

Guterres specifically called for an end to fighting in the region and the restoration of navigational rights in key waterways. He recognized Pakistan and other regional countries for their work in "reducing tensions and creating space for dialogue," stating these efforts must be supported. He also pointed to developments in the occupied West Bank, citing "creeping annexation with violence, settlement expansion, extensive Israeli military operations and large-scale displacement."

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One crisis feeds another. One escalation triggers the next.

Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan's permanent representative to the UN, expressed "profound appreciation" for Guterres's "thoughtful, practical and forward-looking" recommendations. He emphasized that sustained implementation would strengthen mechanisms for peaceful dispute settlement, aligning with Pakistan's argument that diplomacy should be a proactive tool for crisis prevention rather than a reactive measure after conflicts erupt.

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It’s time to step back.