Former US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said on Tuesday reports that Pakistan allowed Iranian military aircraft to park at its airfields while acting as a mediator between Tehran and Washington, if confirmed, would be “not surprising.”
"Working simultaneously with and against the US has been a pattern of Pakistani policies for the last 40 years," Khalilzad posted on X. "Examples include: making commitments to the US not to acquire nuclear weapons while in fact energetically doing just that, helping USA in Afghanistan after 9/11 while also helping those fighting against us and let’s not forget, hosting Bin Laden until we finally located him right next to one of their military facilities, and our Special Forces went in and eliminate him."
Pakistan allowed Iranian military aircraft to park on its airfields while presenting itself as a diplomatic mediator between Tehran and Washington, potentially shielding them from US strikes, US officials told CBS News. The officials said the aircraft were moved to Pakistan, including Nur Khan Air Base near Rawalpindi, days after a ceasefire announcement between the United States and Iran earlier this year.
Among the aircraft was an Iranian Air Force RC-130 reconnaissance plane, according to the officials. CBS also reported that Iranian civilian aircraft were flown to Afghanistan, though it was unclear whether any military aircraft were involved. A Pakistani official rejected suggestions that the aircraft were being hidden, while the foreign ministry said the planes arrived during the ceasefire period for diplomatic and logistical purposes, the report added.
