How did Pakistan bring Iran and the U.S. to the negotiating table?

NPR | By Jeffrey Pierre,

Juana Summers, Tinbete Ermyas

Published April 9, 2026 at 1:42 PM PDT

Pakistan has acted as a mediator between Washington D.C. and Tehran over the last few weeks, and helped broker the ceasefire agreement this week. NPR's Juana Summers talks to Elizabeth Threlkeld, a senior fellow and director at the Stimson Center, about why Pakistan decided to step into this role.

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All Things Considered World

Jeffrey Pierre

Jeffrey Pierre is an editor and producer on the Education Desk, where helps the team manage workflows, coordinate member station coverage, social media and the NPR Ed newsletter. Before the Education Desk, he was a producer and director on Morning Edition and the Up First podcast.

Juana Summers

Juana Summers is a co-host of NPR's All Things Considered, alongside Ailsa Chang, Ari Shapiro and Mary Louise Kelly. She joined All Things Considered in June 2022.

Tinbete Ermyas

How did Pakistan bring Iran and the U.S. to the negotiating table?

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