Pakistan's warming up to Iran without jeopardizing its special relationship with Saudi Arabia is also paying off on the diplomatic front. While in the US for last September's UN General Assembly session, Imran Khan told reporters President Donald Trump had asked him to help defuse tensions with Iran, and that he had immediately spoken with President Rouhani. He also disclosed that during his stopover in Riyadh, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman had asked him to talk to the Iranian president. He refused to say, though, what was discussed except that "we're trying to mediate". Later in October, he went on a peace mission first to Iran where President Rouhnai while welcoming "any gesture by Pakistan for peace in the region", and mentioning the issues they discussed, including the war in Yemen, US sanctions, and wrangling over his country's nuclear programme, went on to emphasise that "any goodwill gesture (from the US and the kingdom) will be responded with goodwill gesture and good words". Two days later, the prime minister headed to Saudi kingdom. Although as usual Saudi leaders made no public statement, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said it had been agreed that differences would be resolved through dialogue. And that Pakistan also offered to host talks between the two countries. Given that background, it is hardly surprising that Gen Bajwa's agenda included discussion of 'convergence among Muslim countries'. Whatever the future prospects of rapprochement between the two regional rivals, Pakistan has been wise to carefully maintain its long-standing policy of staying impartial in that region's internal conflicts and feuds.