China and Pakistan Deepen Strategic Partnership as Iran Mediation Hangs

🤝 BEIJING — Pakistan's mediator just publicly realigned toward Iran's main backer. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: Islamabad deepening its Beijing partnership while brokering Iran-US talks reframes Pakistan's mediator role. Washington assumed Pakistani neutrality. A China-Pakistan joint statement gives Tehran's hardliners cover to treat Islamabad as sympathetic rather than neutral — and hands Republican hawks reason to dismiss any Pakistan-brokered MOU text.