FILE -Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif. AFP
The post, published on X on Tuesday afternoon by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, appeared to be a last-minute public appeal as Trump’s 8 p.m. deadline foIran approached, and shortly after he used profanity saying, "Open the f***in’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell," calling Iranians "animals" and threatening that "a whole civilization will die tonight."
Pakistan had been attempting to broker an off-ramp to ease escalating tensions, and Sharif wrote that diplomacy was “progressing steadily, strongly, and powerfully” while requesting a two-week extension. He also tagged Trump and several senior US advisers.
However, the report said the White House had reviewed and approved the statement before it was posted, citing a person briefed on the communication.
According to the Times, the involvement suggested that diplomatic engagement between Washington and Islamabad was more extensive than the public message indicated.
The episode also underscored that the US administration was exploring ways to defuse the crisis, even as Trump publicly warned of severe consequences for Iran if it failed to meet his demands, including reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
A White House official denied that Trump personally authored the message, amid speculation online after Sharif initially shared the statement with a header reading “Draft – Pakistan’s PM Message on X.” Pakistan’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Hours after the post was published, Trump announced that he would agree to a two-week ceasefire with Iran, a move that appeared to validate the diplomatic effort.
The developments came amid a series of seemingly contradictory statements by Trump following the ceasefire announcement and Tehran’s acceptance.
Shortly after the truce was announced, Iran presented a 10-point proposal as a basis for upcoming talks with the United States.
The plan included recognition of Iran’s right to enrich uranium, the lifting of all sanctions, the release of frozen Iranian assets abroad, compensation payments, the withdrawal of US forces from the region, an end to fighting on all fronts — including Lebanon — guarantees against future attacks, and the preservation of Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz, with ship transit coordinated with Iranian forces.
Trump said Tuesday that Washington found Iran’s 10-point ceasefire proposal “workable basis on which to negotiate" and even reposted Iran's FM Abbas Araghchi’s X post statement on the ceasefire in which he clearly stated Trump's "acceptance of the general framework of Iran's 10-point proposal as a basis for negotiations."
However, Trump suggested a day later that many elements of his own 15-point plan, previously rejected by Tehran, had been accepted.
He also endorsed Israel's deadly strikes on Lebanon and denied that Lebanon was covered by the ceasefire, although Pakistan’s prime minister had reinforced Iran's narrative in a follow-up post on X, stating that the United States, Iran, and their allies had agreed to a ceasefire "everywhere", including Lebanon.
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