Who fixed Donald Trump-Asim Munir meeting? Know Pakistan-born man who praises Narendra Modi

When US President Donald Trump invited Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir for lunch at his official residence of the White House, it shocked the world. It was the first time that a US president met the army chief of a country. Earlier, President George Bush met then-Pakistan Army chief Pervez Musharraf, who had staged a coup-de-tat and declared himself Marshal-Law Administrator. So, Bush met the head of the Pakistani state, not its army chief. 

Who arranged meeting?

If media reports are to be believed, the luncheon meeting was arranged by Pakistani-American businessman Sajid Tarar. Living in Baltimore, he has been a regular visitor at the Republican National Conventions. He is supposed to have strong links to the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement. Before the 2016 Presidential Elections, Tarar founded the group 'American Muslims for Trump' and came close to Donald Trump’s circle. Trump obliged him by giving his son a role at the US State Department during his first term.

Sajid Tarar praises Narendra Modi

Besides running his own business, Sajid Tarar heads the nonprofit Centre for Social Change in Baltimore, Maryland. Earlier, he has also worked on finance teams for state governors. He has held senior positions in several business and investment groups. He moved to the US in the 1990s and soon made his presence felt in business as well as political circles. The Pakistan-born US businessman also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Representing an interesting stand in a divided diaspora, he supported the idea of peaceful, cooperative ties between India and Pakistan.  

The Trump-Munir luncheon meeting was held in the Cabinet Room of the White House and lasted for over an hour. Pakistan’s ISI chief, Lt Gen Asim Malik joined Munir in the meeting.

Trump: Pakistan Knows Iran Better

Talking about the ongoing Israel-Iran War, Trump told reporters, "They (Pakistani leadership) know Iran very well, better than most. They're not happy about anything. It's not that they're bad with Israel. They know them both actually, but they probably, maybe, they know Iran better, but they see what's going on and he agreed with me." 

Will Pakistan help US in Israel-Iran War?

Analysts believe the main reason for meeting Asim Muneer is Trump's clever ploy to keep him in good humours so that the Pakistan Army and the state of Pakistan can be used against Iran if the tension escalates and Washington is forced to join the Israel-Iran War. It's simple. Pakistan shares borders with Iran and the US may need its air space to attack Iran. It has been reported that Pakistan has shared the coordinates for the locations, that were bombed by Israel. Besides, it has been suggested in a social media post on X that Pakistan has allowed the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) of the US to spy on Iran. It also shared an alleged screenshot of BACN 11-9001 being spotted on Flightradar24.