U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio Friday disclosed that Pakistan had initially accepted inclusion in the proposed International Stabilization Force for Gaza, however, it did not confirm the deployment of troops.
Last week, Pakistan had attended a conference held in Qatar, which was hosted by the U.S. Central Command. The conference discussed the command structure and other unresolved operational issues regarding the International Stabilization Force.
“I feel very confident that we have a number of nation-states acceptable to all sides of this who are willing to step forward and be a part of that stabilisation force and certainly, Pakistan is key, if they agree to do so,” he added.
Rubio noted that key issues related to the force’s mandate, command structure, and funding arrangements were still under discussion.
“I think the next step here is announcing the Board of Peace [and] the Palestinian technocratic group that will help provide daily governance,” the secretary added.
“Once that‘s in place, I think that will allow us to firm up the stabilisation force, including how it’s going to be paid for, what their rules of engagement are, what their role will be in demilitarisation and so forth.”
When asked if the US has received consent from Pakistan that they will be sending their troops to Gaza for peacebuilding, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says, “…we’re very grateful to Pakistan for their offer to be a part of it, or at least their offer to consider being a… pic.twitter.com/1ddlv9yupS
— War Analyst (@War_Analysts) December 19, 2025
Nearly 45 countries, including Pakistan, attended the meeting. Marco Rubio made these claims in response to a question of whether Pakistan had given consent regarding the deployment of force for peace building in Gaza.
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Rubio said that the United States was very grateful to Pakistan for their offer to be a part of it, or at least their offer to consider being a part of it, adding that the future clarity was still required before any country could be asked to formally commit.
The U.S. State Department has formally approached more than 70 countries seeking troops or funding for the proposed force. Some 90 countries have reportedly so far indicated willingness to assist through troops, logistics, equipment and international deployment in Gaza, potentially beginning as early as next month.
Diplomatic sources according to the local publication of Pakistan, Pakistan is considering deploying 3,500 troops as part of the ISF. The statement of Rubio comes a day after Pakistan’s foreign office had taken an official position.
The spokesman of Pakistan’s foreign office, Tahir Indrabi, said that Islamabad had not yet decided on contributing troops to the IASF, indicating the discussions were still at an exploratory stage rather than reflecting a final commitment.