Can Iran turn postwar vulnerability into a regional security pact?

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has revived a familiar Iranian proposition at an unusually consequential moment, arguing that regional security should be built by neighboring states rather than around outside powers.

Speaking at the Islamic Unity Conference in Tehran on Thursday, Pezeshkian proposed a mutual security and nonaggression pact among neighboring Islamic countries, alongside a permanent mechanism for mediation and conflict prevention. 

Iran was ready to establish “joint security arrangements” with its neighbors, he declared, according to his official website and state media.

The remarks come as the recent war with the United States and Israel exposed vulnerabilities that Iran’s extensive investment in missiles, drones and regional deterrence could not eliminate. Tehran demonstrated its ability to retaliate, but it could not prevent the wider region from becoming part of the conflict.