Deputy prime minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has distanced Pakistan from the 20-point Gaza peace plan announced by United States (US) President Donald Trump, saying it was different from the draft proposed by Muslim countries.
“The 20-point [Gaza peace plan] made public by President Trump is not truly ours and changes have been made to the draft we approved,” Dar said while speaking on the floor of the National Assembly on Friday.
The statement comes a day after it was reported that Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu secured “significant 11th-hour changes” to Trump’s proposal, raising concerns if Pakistan among other Muslim states had previously agreed on a different draft.
According to The Times of Israel, Netanyahu, during the extensive meeting with Trump, managed to secure the changes to the proposal regarding the scope and nature of Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza, along with the disarmament of Hamas.
Dar had earlier this week also seemingly distanced Pakistan from the plan.
Appearing on Geo News a day after Trump, standing alongside Netanyahu, asserted that PM Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir fully backed his Gaza plan, the FM revealed that Islamabad had held detailed discussions with Trump’s team on the proposal and later submitted its amendments to the points shared by Washington.
However, he said, the draft did not incorporate all of Islamabad’s amendments.
Just hours before President Trump’s announcement, the premier had welcomed the plan, saying durable peace between the Palestinian people and Israel was essential for regional stability and economic growth.
In a post on X, PM Shehbaz said he was “convinced that durable peace between the Palestinian people and Israel would be essential in bringing political stability and economic growth to the region”.
Now, fate of the plan, in reported absence of Muslim countries’ confidence, remains in balance.