Japan lauds Pakistani role in US-Iran ceasefire, stresses importance of global energy security

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Monday lauded the role of Pakistan in securing the 14-day ceasefire between the US and Iran, while underlining the importance of global energy security.

This came during a phone call with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to a statement from Sharif’s office.

The two leaders discussed the direct talks between the US and Iran held in Islamabad over the weekend.

Takaichi “appreciated Pakistan’s diplomatic role in facilitating the ceasefire and talks,” the statement said.

She expressed Japan’s “full support for the peace process and its importance for regional stability and global energy security.”

The talks in Islamabad came after Pakistan secured a 14-day ceasefire between the two warring sides on April 8. But the highest-level talks between Washington and Tehran held since 1979, remained inconclusive.

Sharif told Takaichi that he was “grateful to both the US and Iranian delegations for their extensive discussions” in Islamabad.

“Pakistan would continue with its efforts to ensure that the ceasefire is maintained,” Sharif said.

According to a statement from the Japanese Foreign Ministry, Takaichi said that Tokyo has been in close communication with both the US and Iran “at the head of states level and taking diplomatic efforts toward an early de-escalation of the situation.”

She also emphasized that restoring the stabilization of the Strait of Hormuz, is “urgently needed, and that it is essential to ensure the safety of navigation as soon as possible for all vessels, including those of Japan and other Asian countries.”

Earlier in the day, Tokyo called for a “final agreement” between the US and Iran to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East.

“What is most important is that de-escalation, including securing the safety of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, is actually achieved," Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told a news conference in Tokyo.

Japan procures some 90% of its energy products from the Middle East and supplies have been affected by the US-Iran war as Tehran maintains control of the Strait of Hormuz.