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Washington: US Senator Lindsey Graham launched a blistering attack on Pakistan on Tuesday, questioning its trustworthiness as a broker between the United States and Iran after reports suggested that Islamabad may have allowed Iranian military aircraft to use its airbases, including Nur Khan Airbase. The South Carolina Republican stressed that he did not trust Pakistan and asserted that if the claims were true, the US should seek another country to mediate talks. "I don't trust Pakistan as far as I can throw them," he said. 

The US Senator's comments came during a Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC) hearing where Lindsey Graham pressed US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on the matter. He suggested that the alleged arrangement could explain why diplomatic efforts with Iran were stalling, saying, “No wonder this damn thing is going nowhere.” The hearing also saw the Pentagon reveal that the cost of the conflict with Iran had risen to nearly $29 billion, up from earlier estimates.

The new figure on Iran war cost was disclosed during a budget hearing on Capitol Hill as Hegseth, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen Dan Caine and Pentagon comptroller Jules Hurst testified on the administration’s proposed $1.5 trillion defence budget for 2027. The officials stated that the increase reflected updated expenses for equipment repair, replacement and bigger operations since the last estimate of $25 billion on April 29.

Iranian Aircraft Shielded At Pakistani Airbase?

Amidst mediation efforts, the latest controversy was fuelled by a CBS News report citing anonymous US officials who claimed that Iran had moved several aircraft to Pakistan’s Nur Khan Air Base shortly after President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire with Tehran in early April. Among them was reportedly an Iranian Air Force RC-130 reconnaissance aircraft, a surveillance variant of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules.

The foreign media report further claimed that Iran had also sent civilian aircraft to Afghanistan, though it remained unclear whether military planes were included in those flights. Meanwhile, as expected, Pakistan has rejected the allegations, with a senior Pakistani official calling them “speculative and misleading”. The official noted that Nur Khan Air Base lies in a densely populated area, which makes it implausible to conceal a large foreign military fleet.

On the other hand, Afghanistan’s Taliban administration has also denied the claims, with Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid informing CBS News, “No, that’s not true and Iran doesn’t need to do that.” Despite the denials, the Pakistan Foreign Ministry acknowledged the presence of Iranian aircraft but insisted they had no links to military operations.

Calls For Reassessment Of Pakistan’s Diplomatic Role

US Senator Graham said that after the reports are verified, it would demand a “complete re-evaluation” of Pakistan’s role in regional diplomacy. He pointed to past statements by Pakistani defence officials as allegedly hostile toward US and Israeli interests, saying that he would “not be shocked if this were true".

During the hearing, Lindsey Graham attempted to establish whether the Pentagon had intelligence confirming the aircraft movements. Though Hegseth declined to comment directly, citing the sensitivity of the ongoing negotiations. The senator later informed colleagues and reporters that sheltering Iranian assets would show Pakistan was not a neutral actor. “If they actually do have Iranian aircraft parked in Pakistan bases to protect Iranian military assets, that tells me we should be looking maybe for somebody else to mediate,” he said.

Cost Of US-Iran Conflict Jumps To $29 Billion

Alongside the diplomatic row, the Pentagon also updated the lawmakers on the financial toll of the war with Iran. The latest estimate of $29 billion is $4 billion higher than the figure presented just two weeks earlier. Pentagon comptroller Jules Hurst explained that the joint staff and comptroller teams were continuously revising the estimate, with the latest rise driven by costs for repairing and replacing equipment used during operations.

Meanwhile, the disclosure intensified scrutiny of the conflict’s impact on US military readiness under Donald Trump. The administration is seeking a record $1.5 trillion defence budget for 2027, a proposal now facing closer examination in light of the increased expenditures in the Middle East.