US senators question Pakistan’s role in Iran–US deal, cite terror ties and sheltering of bin Laden | World

Two Republican senators have raised concerns about the roles of Qatar and Pakistan in US-Iran peace deal, accusing them of having long-standing links with militant groups. Their comments came after US Vice President J D Vance spoke warmly about Pakistan during diplomatic talks involving Iran.

Senator Rick Scott of Florida said in a post on X on Monday:

“It should be clear to everybody by now who our friends really are. Qatar and Pakistan have long histories of harbouring terrorists, and right now they seem far more invested in propping up Iran’s decades-long terror campaign than achieving a meaningful peace.”

“There is still room for a workable agreement that benefits everyone. HOWEVER, what everybody needs to get through their heads here is that there is ZERO chance Iran comes out of this able to build a nuclear weapon.”

The comments were made as Vice President Vance was in Switzerland, where he joined leaders from Pakistan and Qatar for discussions on technical aspects of a possible peace arrangement involving Iran.

Tim Sheehy rebukes Pakistan

Senator Tim Sheehy of Montana also criticised Pakistan during an interview with Fox News. He referred to its past role in sheltering Osama bin Laden and alleged broader security concerns linked to its intelligence services, including the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

“Pakistan, let’s not forget, Pakistan hid bin Laden for a decade. They funded Ayatollah through ISI insurances,” he said.

Sheehy also called for a wider set of regional partners to be included in talks, suggesting that the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Saudi Arabia should be involved instead. He argued that these countries were more reliable US allies in the region.

“The UAE, Israel and Saudi Arabia were the real allies of the US in the Middle East,” Sheehy said. 

“Qatar has been laundering money for terrorist organisations for decades.The Pakistanis through the ISI funded insurgencies against us and hid bin Laden. So to assume they’re going to be objective middlemen here, I don’t think is accurate. I think we need to make sure that we stand with the UAE, and we stand with Israel unequivocally, because they will be our vanguard in the region no matter what happens,” he added. 

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