Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday called for a two-week pause in the Middle East war, urging President Donald Trump to extend his deadline and asking Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz for the same period, according to a post on X.
Sharif said diplomatic efforts for a peaceful settlement were “progressing steadily, strongly and powerfully” and could produce substantive results in the near future, according to the post.
“To allow diplomacy to run its course, I earnestly request President Trump to extend the deadline for two weeks,” Sharif wrote. He also asked “the Iranian brothers” to open the Strait of Hormuz for a corresponding two-week period as a goodwill gesture.
Sharif also urged all warring parties to observe a two-week ceasefire everywhere to give diplomacy time to pursue what he described as a conclusive end to the war in the interest of long-term peace and stability in the region.
As President Trump’s reported 8 p.m. EDT deadline approached Tuesday, the president wrote in a Truth Social post that “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran did not make a deal.
The threat language President Trump used added to fears of wider escalation and drew criticism from some U.S. politicians and international leaders.
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