For the first time since the aftermath of 9/11, Islamabad has found itself at the centre of the world's attention, drawing dozens of international journalists to witness what many are already describing as a defining moment in modern diplomatic history — direct talks between the United States and Iran after 47 years of hostility.
The Pakistani government moved swiftly to accommodate the influx, setting up a media facilitation centre at the Jinnah Convention Centre, just yards from the Serena Hotel where the negotiations were held. Behind the scenes, months of quiet but intensive diplomacy by Islamabad — including hosting foreign ministers of Türkiye, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and a separate mission by Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar to Beijing to urge China to use its influence on Tehran — laid the groundwork for what is now unfolding.
Irfan Ghauri, Director News of the English Service at We News, Pakistan's prominent digital media outlet, told Gulf Times that the significance of the moment could hardly be overstated. "History is being made in Islamabad, where top-level state functionaries of the US and Iran have shared a table after 47 years of hostilities," he said. "The last time Iranian and American dignitaries had a direct interaction was during the days of President Richard Nixon and Iranian king Muhammad Reza Pahlavi, before the 1979 revolution."
Ghauri was emphatic about the seriousness signalled by the composition of both delegations. The US has sent Vice-President JD Vance, supported by teams of technical and administrative experts — a sharp contrast, he noted, to earlier Oman-brokered rounds where Washington was represented only by Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff.
On the Iranian side, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf were present, backed by deputy foreign ministers, the head of the Iranian state bank, and specialists covering everything from foreign affairs to nuclear matters.
"This is a full package, which shows seriousness on both sides," Ghauri said.
He also revealed that Pakistani diplomacy has quietly shifted gear during the process. "In the earlier stage, when it brokered a ceasefire, Pakistan acted as a facilitator. It has now assumed the role of a formal mediator," he said. He added that Iranian and American dignitaries held a joint dinner last night following their direct talks — a detail that, in the context of decades of estrangement, carries considerable symbolic weight. If the talks succeed, Ghauri believes they will be remembered as the "Islamabad Accord."
For Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and media trainer Aoun Abbas Sahi, who has covered some of the biggest stories of his generation, the Islamabad talks stand apart. "No-one could have imagined it would happen in Pakistan," he said. "Pakistan has been the epicentre of news, most of the time for all the wrong reasons. But this time it is different."
Sahi said his sources confirmed that Iranian and American dignitaries met directly in the presence of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif — the first such encounter since 1979. "For me, this is the most important event of my journalistic career," he said, adding that he remained hopeful something positive would emerge from the process.
Mohsin Ejaz, foreign affairs reporter at ARY TV and a seasoned diplomatic correspondent who has covered negotiations from Geneva and Vienna to New York and Doha, offered a more layered assessment. He called bringing the two sides together against the backdrop of the Margalla Hills, "a quiet assertion of Pakistan's growing role as a credible mediator in a region long dominated by traditional powers."
The hospitality extended to the press corps at the Convention Centre — high-speed 5G connectivity, efficient shuttle services, gourmet catering, live traditional music, and a "Brewed for Peace" coffee station — struck him as a thoughtful and professionally warm touch.
Yet Ejaz was candid about the frustrations.
"Substantive briefings were scarce, leaving many reporters feeling sidelined and bored between sessions," he said. Even so, he remained optimistic about the broader significance of the moment. "These talks may not yet deliver a grand breakthrough, but they represent a vital step in transforming a fragile ceasefire into something more durable," he said.
"Real diplomatic progress often emerges not in the familiar halls of Europe, but in places where fresh perspectives and determined mediation can bridge even the deepest divides."
Not all voices, however, were celebratory. Veteran electronic media journalist Zainul Islam noted that local television channels were barred from bringing cameras into the Convention Centre and were left relying on mobile devices.
Iftikhar Sherazi, bureau chief of Dawn News TV in Islamabad, echoed those frustrations. Despite the impressive physical setup, he said the media centre "did not provide any news." No briefings were arranged after noon Saturday, and the resulting vacuum fuelled speculative reporting. Sherazi also struck a cautionary note about the talks themselves.
"Israel has always played the role of a detractor," he said. "Both Iran and the US have taken hard lines, and it now depends on the mediator to create synergies between them."
What is beyond dispute is that Islamabad, for this brief but consequential moment, has stepped onto the world stage in a manner few anticipated — and that Pakistan, for once, finds itself in the news for all the right reasons.
