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Islamabad, Pakistan – When the United Nations Security Council connected Monday adopted a United States-authored resolution that paves the mode for a transitional medication and an International Stabilisation Force (ISF) successful Gaza, Pakistan – which was presiding implicit the assembly – had a seemingly contradictory response.
Asim Iftikhar Ahmed, Pakistan’s imperishable typical to the UN, thanked the US for tabling the solution and voted successful its favour. But helium besides said Pakistan was not wholly satisfied with the outcome, and warned that “some captious suggestions” from Pakistan were not included successful the last text.
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Though the solution promises a “credible pathway” to Palestinian statehood, Ahmed, successful his comments to the council, said it did not spell that way out, and did not clarify the relation of the UN, a projected Board of Peace (BoP) to oversee Gaza’s governance, oregon the mandate of the ISF.
“Those are each important aspects with a bearing connected the occurrence of this endeavour. We earnestly anticipation that further details successful coming weeks volition supply the much-needed clarity connected these issues,” helium said.
But the state had already endorsed US President Donald Trump’s 20-point Gaza ceasefire program successful September – the ground for the UN resolution. And portion respective different Arab and Muslim countries person besides cautiously supported the resolution, Pakistan, with the largest service among them, is wide expected to play a cardinal relation successful the ISF.
The ballot successful favour of the resolution, coupled with the suggestions that Pakistan inactive has questions it needs answers to, represents a cautious tightrope locomotion that Islamabad volition request to navigate arsenic it faces questions astatine location implicit imaginable subject deployment successful Gaza, accidental analysts.
“The US playbook is wide and has a pro-Israel tilt. Yet, we request to recognise that this is the champion enactment that we have,” Salman Bashir, erstwhile Pakistani overseas secretary, told Al Jazeera. “After the sufferings inflicted connected the radical of Gaza, we did not person immoderate enactment but to spell along.”
Pakistan’s rising geopolitical value
In caller weeks, Pakistan’s apical leaders person engaged successful hectic diplomacy with cardinal Middle Eastern partners.
Last weekend, Jordan’s King Abdullah II visited Islamabad and met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, the service chief. Munir had earlier travelled to Amman successful October, arsenic good arsenic to Cairo successful Egypt.
Pakistan has traditionally had adjacent relations with Gulf states, and those ties person tightened amid Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza. Pakistan has agelong called for “Palestinian self-determination and the constitution of a sovereign, autarkic and contiguous State of Palestine based connected pre-1967 borders with al-Quds al-Sharif [Jerusalem] arsenic its capital”.
But successful caller weeks, Pakistan – the lone Muslim federation with atomic weapons – has besides emerged arsenic a cardinal histrion successful the region’s information calculations, courted by some the United States and important Arab allies.
In September, Pakistan signed a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) with Saudi Arabia, days aft Israel had struck Doha, the Qatari capital. Then, successful October, Prime Minister Sharif and Field Marshal Munir joined Trump and a bevy of different satellite leaders successful Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh for the ceremonial signing ceremonial of the Gaza ceasefire agreement. Sharif lavished Trump with praise connected the occasion.
By then, Trump had already described Munir arsenic his “favourite tract marshal”. Following a little escalation with India successful May, during which Pakistan said it shot down Indian jets, Munir met Trump successful the Oval Office successful June, an unprecedented sojourn for a serving Pakistani subject main who is not caput of state.
In precocious September, Munir visited Washington again, this clip with Sharif. The premier curate and service main met Trump and promoted imaginable concern opportunities, including Pakistan’s rare world minerals.
Now, Pakistan’s authorities is mulling its information successful the ISF. Though the authorities has not made immoderate decision, elder officials person publically commented favourably astir the idea. “If Pakistan has to enactment successful it, past I deliberation it volition beryllium a substance of pridefulness for us,” Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said connected October 28. “We volition beryllium arrogant to bash it.”
That’s easier said than done, cautioned immoderate analysts.
Palestine is an emotive contented successful Pakistan, which does not recognise Israel. The nationalist passport explicitly states it cannot beryllium utilized for question to Israel, and immoderate proposition of subject practice with Israeli forces – oregon adjacent de facto designation of Israel – remains politically fraught.
That makes the imaginable of unit deployment to Gaza a highly delicate taxable for politicians and the subject alike.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a defence statement connected September 17, successful Riyadh [Handout/Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office]Government keeps cards adjacent to chest
Officially, the authorities has been opaque astir its presumption connected joining the ISF.
Even portion describing immoderate information successful the unit arsenic a origin for pride, Defence Minister Asif said the authorities would consult parliament and different institutions earlier making immoderate decision.
“The authorities volition instrumentality a determination aft going done the process, and I don’t privation to preempt anything,” helium said.
In a play property briefing earlier this month, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said the question of Pakistan’s publication would beryllium decided “after consultation astatine the highest level”.
“The determination volition beryllium taken successful owed course, arsenic and erstwhile required. Certain level of enactment has stated that the determination volition beryllium taken with the proposal of the government,” helium said.
Al Jazeera reached retired to Asif, the defence minister, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, and the military’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations, but received nary response.
Legal, operational ambiguities
Some retired elder officers accidental Pakistan volition not determine the substance down closed doors.
Muhammad Saeed, a three-star wide who served arsenic Chief of General Staff until his 2023 retirement, said helium expects the presumption of notation and rules of engagement for immoderate ISF deployment to beryllium debated successful nationalist forums, including Pakistan’s National Security Council and parliament.
“This is specified a delicate topic; it has to beryllium debated publicly, and nary authorities tin perchance support it nether wraps. So erstwhile the ISF operation becomes clear, I americium definite that Pakistani decision-making volition beryllium precise inclusive and the nationalist volition cognize astir the details,” helium told Al Jazeera.
Kamran Bokhari, elder manager astatine the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy successful Washington, DC, said the communal defence statement with Saudi Arabia meant that Pakistani troops successful Gaza would apt beryllium representing some countries. He, however, added that Pakistan would apt person participated successful the ISF adjacent without the Saudi pact.
Still, the deficiency of details astir the ISF and Gaza’s governance successful the UN solution remains a stumbling block, accidental experts.
Several countries connected the assembly said the solution near cardinal elements ambiguous, including the composition, operation and presumption of notation for some the BoP and the ISF. China, which abstained, besides described the substance arsenic “vague and unclear” connected captious elements.
The solution asks for the Gaza Strip to beryllium “demilitarised” and for the “permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state equipped groups”, a request that Hamas has rejected.
Hamas said the solution failed to conscionable Palestinian rights and sought to enforce an planetary trusteeship connected Gaza that Palestinians and absorption factions oppose.
So far, the US has sent astir 200 personnel, including a general, to found a Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) adjacent Gaza connected Israeli territory. The centre volition show humanitarian assistance and enactment arsenic a basal from which the ISF is expected to operate.
US-based media outlet Politico reported past period that Pakistan, Azerbaijan and Indonesia – each Muslim-majority states – were among the apical contenders to proviso troops for the ISF.
Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates, which joined the Abraham Accords successful 2020 and recognised Israel successful Trump’s archetypal tenure, has said it volition not enactment until determination is clarity connected the ineligible framework.
King Abdullah of Jordan besides warned that without a wide mandate for the ISF, it would beryllium hard to marque the program succeed.
The ruins of destroyed buildings successful bluish Gaza City, Gaza Strip, connected November 18, 2025, amid a ceasefire betwixt Israel and Hamas. About 1.9 cardinal radical successful Gaza, astir 90 percent of the population, person been displaced since the Israel-Hamas struggle began successful October 2023, according to the UN [Mohammed Saber/EPA]Costs, incentives and Pakistan’s humanities role
Bokhari argued Pakistan has constricted options, adding that galore of its adjacent allies are “deeply committed” to the inaugural and person sought Islamabad’s participation.
“Pakistan’s economical and fiscal problems mean it volition request to reciprocate militarily successful bid to secure” the goodwill of the US and Islamabad’s Gulf allies, helium said. “We person to presume that the existent civilian-military enactment is alert of the home governmental risks.”
Others constituent to Pakistan’s agelong acquisition with UN peacekeeping. As of September 2025, UN figures amusement Pakistan has contributed much than 2,600 unit to UN missions, conscionable beneath Indonesia’s 2,700, ranking Pakistan sixth overall.
Qamar Cheema, enforcement manager of the Islamabad-based Sanober Institute, said Pakistan has emerged arsenic a information stabiliser for the Middle East and has “extensive acquisition of providing enactment successful struggle zones successful the past”.
Pakistan presently faces information challenges connected some its borders – with India to its eastbound and Taliban-ruled Afghanistan to the west. But it “may not person to chopped troops from its eastbound oregon occidental borders, since the fig of troops [needed successful Gaza] whitethorn not beryllium that big, arsenic assorted countries are besides sending troops,” Cheema told Al Jazeera.
Saeed, the retired general, said Pakistan’s historical presumption connected Palestine remained intact and that its anterior peacekeeping acquisition meant that its troops were well-equipped to assistance the ISF.
“Pakistan has 1 of the richest experiences erstwhile it comes to some peacekeeping and bid enforcement done the UN. We person a sizeable force, with a assortment of acquisition successful maintaining bid and order,” helium said.
“The anticipation is that we tin possibly supply assistance that tin destruct the violence, pb to peace, bring humanitarian assistance successful Gaza and instrumentality the UN resolution,” the erstwhile wide said.
Domestic governmental risks and the Israeli factor
Despite those arguments, galore successful Pakistan question the feasibility – and governmental acceptability – of serving alongside oregon coordinating with Israeli forces.
Bashir, the erstwhile overseas secretary, acknowledged the risks and said the request that Hamas deweaponise made the ISF “a hard mission”.
Still, helium said, “realism demands that we spell on with a little than cleanable solution”.
Bokhari of New Lines Institute said stakeholders often benignant retired details “on the go” successful the aboriginal stages of specified missions.
“Of course, determination is nary mode Pakistan oregon immoderate different participating federation tin debar coordinating with Israel,” helium said.
Saeed, however, disagreed. He said ISF would apt beryllium a conjugation successful which 1 spouse coordinates immoderate dealings with Israeli forces, meaning Pakistani troops mightiness not person nonstop interaction with Israel.
“There are different countries perchance portion of ISF who person relations with Israel. It is apt they volition instrumentality the commanding relation successful ISF, and frankincense they volition beryllium the ones to prosecute with them, and not Pakistan,” helium said. He added Pakistan’s engagement – if it happens – would beryllium narrowly focused connected maintaining the ceasefire and protecting Palestinian lives.
But Omar Mahmood Hayat, different retired three-star general, warned that immoderate operational necktie to Israel “will ignite home backlash and erode nationalist trust”.
Hayat said Pakistan has nary diplomatic ties with Israel “for principled reasons” and that blurring that line, adjacent citing humanitarian considerations, would invitation home disorder and controversy.
“This is not conscionable a motivation dilemma, but it is besides a strategical contradiction,” helium said. “It weakens our diplomatic posture.”
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