Pakistan Left Red-Faced After Iran Rules Out June 19 Ceremony Announced By Shehbaz Sharif

Last Updated:June 18, 2026, 11:24 IST

Sharif deleted his claim that Pakistan would host a June 19 signing ceremony in Switzerland after Iran ruled out the event.

Pakistan has been left facing a diplomatic embarrassment after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif deleted an earlier post announcing that Islamabad would host an official US-Iran signing ceremony in Switzerland on June 19 and reposted it without that claim.

The reversal came as Iran publicly clarified that the memorandum of understanding had been signed digitally by the presidents of the United States and Iran and that no signing ceremony would be held in Switzerland.

In the paragraph subsequently removed from his post on X, Sharif had said: “Pakistan, with the support of co-mediator the State of Qatar, will host the official ceremony as scheduled on 19 June 2026 in Switzerland, to commemorate this landmark event and commence with the technical level talks."

Sharif’s revised post retained his claim that the agreement had been “endorsed by me as the mediator", but omitted the entire paragraph concerning Pakistan’s role as host of the proposed ceremony.

The deletion has raised questions over how closely Islamabad was coordinating with the two principal parties to an agreement that it has presented as a major Pakistani diplomatic achievement.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei had earlier said that the memorandum would be signed digitally and that a signing ceremony would not take place in Switzerland.

“The plan for the negotiating teams to be in Geneva is in place, but the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding will be digital and a signing ceremony will not be held in Switzerland," Baqaei was quoted as saying by Iran’s Tasnim news agency.

He subsequently confirmed that the text had been finalised after being signed by both sides.

The Iranian statement directly contradicted Sharif’s announcement that Pakistan would host an official signing ceremony in Switzerland on June 19.

What Shehbaz Sharif Initially Announced

In an earlier post on June 15, Sharif announced that the United States and Iran had reached a peace agreement and that the official signing ceremony would be held in Switzerland on June 19.

He said mediators would facilitate meetings during the week to prepare for technical-level talks and the formal signing ceremony.

In a later post announcing the electronic signing of the memorandum, Sharif said it had been signed by the presidents of the United States and Iran and endorsed by him as mediator.

However, he deleted the earlier post and reposted it without the paragraph saying that Pakistan would host the June 19 ceremony with Qatar’s support.

Iran Rules Out Switzerland Signing Ceremony

Baqaei made clear that while plans for negotiating teams to be present in Geneva remained in place, the agreement itself had been signed digitally and no signing ceremony would be held in Switzerland.

The public contradiction, followed by the removal of Pakistan’s hosting claim, has turned what Islamabad had projected as a diplomatic achievement into an awkward reversal.

While Sharif continues to describe himself as a mediator in the agreement, the episode raises questions about Pakistan’s grasp of the final arrangements.

About the Author

Manoj Gupta

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

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