No breakthrough is no breakdown

The marathon peace talks held in Islamabad between the United States and Iran are a tribute to diplomacy. The 30-plus hours of intricate parleys after a warmongering of 40 days, which pushed the global order to the brink of a catastrophe, could not have come without the astute and sincere efforts of Pakistan, and inevitably Field Marshal Asim Munir and the government must be given credit for it. That aspect has unequivocally been appreciated by both Washington and Tehran, despite the fact that negotiations could not lead to an instant agreement.

The fact that the warring sides agreed to disagree and went back to their respective capitals with a plethora of shared notes, and with an objective understanding that they need to move further in their stated positions is a win-win situation. It would have been quite unrealistic to expect a deal ironed out over issues that had kept them apart for decades. More concentrated deliberations are needed over issues such as the future navigation of the Straits of Hormuz, a permanent end to warfare, and the enrichment riddle.

It is recent history that the Oslo Accords took nine months and the JCPOA took more than 20 months to see the light of the day. The Islamabad-brokered dialogue under the auspices of Beijing has surprised all and sundry, and the realism with which the entire process has moved forward is unprecedented and deserves commendation. As both sides restrained from playing to the gallery and did not opt for brinkmanship is like an added feather to the cap.

The trust that US Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Speaker Bagher Ghalibaf had reposed in talks, and in the competence of the hosts, will surely go a long way in striking a deal. Both sides know their limitations as they have a constituency of peace to cater back home. The need of the hour is to convert the 15-day ceasefire into a permanent armistice, and get talking on a broader canvas of cooperation. There is no room for dereliction as that will come as a blow to the hopes of finding an off-ramp to the crisis.