Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry has confirmed that the United States and Iran are still discussing possibilities through Islamabad for the next round of peace talks.
The two-week fragile ceasefire, which was agreed upon in April, is just days away from coming to an end.
While the Pakistani side did not confirm any specific timeline, hints from both Iran and Washington suggest that the two sides have agreed to meet in Islamabad once more.
“Who will come, how big the delegation will be, who will stay, and who will go— it is for the parties to decide,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad, referring to what the upcoming talks might look like.
“As a mediator, it’s important for us to keep the talks confidential. We had the details and information of the talks entrusted to us by the negotiating parties,” he added.
Speaking on the first round of negotiations which ended without any breakthrough on April 12 in Islamabad, Andrabi said, “There was neither a breakthrough nor a breakdown.”
He said nuclear issues along with the Strait of Hormuz have remained major deadlocks, while Trump on Thursday announced a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel.
On Wednesday, Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) General Asim Munir arrived in Tehran with a delegation that included Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
He was received by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who said he was “delighted” to welcome the field marshal and expressed gratitude for Pakistan’s “gracious hosting of dialogue”.
Besides, the Iranian parliament speaker, who led the Iranian delegation during the first round of Islamabad talks, also met Munir.
Meanwhile, Reza Amiri Moghadam, Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan, said at an event in Islamabad that Tehran would not consider any venue other than Pakistan for talks with Washington.
“We will have talks in Pakistan and nowhere else, because we trust Pakistan,” he said.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said further talks would “very likely” take place in Islamabad, adding, “We feel good about the prospects of a deal.”
Iran has insisted that Lebanon be included in any agreement, arguing that ongoing Israeli strikes there, which have killed more than 2,000 people and displaced 1.2 million, cannot be separated from the wider conflict.
Meanwhile, US defence analysts have warned that a military conflict with Iran could leave multiple shipping routes in complete disarray — starting with the Strait of Hormuz and other ports in Oman and the Red Sea — if a diplomatic deal is not reached.
Also read: Iran agrees to give enriched uranium, claims Trump
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