US and Iran hold talks in Islamabad as Pakistan seeks to broker peace deal | US-Israel war on Iran
Peace talks between Iran and the United States began this afternoon in Islamabad; Senior negotiators from both countries met face to face at the highest level for the first time since 1979, with the participation of mediators from Pakistan.
Pakistani state television said US and Iranian officials were “sitting directly at the same table” (later confirmed by the White House) and that the talks began in a positive atmosphere despite the ongoing conflict in Lebanon.
The American delegation is led by US vice president JD Vance, while Iran’s negotiators in Islamabad are led by parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and foreign minister Abbas Araghchi.
Pakistani sources also said that Pakistani Chief of General Staff Asim Munir was also in the room. The marshal, who played a key role in securing a ceasefire earlier this week, reportedly has a good relationship with US President Donald Trump.
A political source said the first round of talks lasted about two hours, followed by a second round of more technical discussions. The source added that these technical talks were divided into basic issues focusing on security, finance and the Strait of Hormuz.
Afterwards, it was planned to stop for dinner at the home of Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Sharif stated that Iranian negotiators had previously held a preliminary meeting with Pakistani mediators, demanding a ceasefire in Lebanon, compensation and the unblocking of frozen assets as part of the peace agreement.
But the US has warned that it will not allow itself to be manipulated by a weakened Tehran. Vance said upon arrival: “If they’re going to try to play us, then they’re going to find that the negotiating team isn’t that understanding.”
In previous meetings, US and Iranian teams were deployed separately.
During nuclear talks in Geneva in late February, Omani diplomats went back and forth between the two sides, but talks collapsed when the United States and Israel bombed Iran on February 28, killing religious leader Ali Khamenei.
Israel is not involved in the talks because it says its army has bombed 200 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon in the last 24 hours. While 10 people lost their lives overnight in the attacks on the towns of Kfar Sir, Zefta and Toul, Hezbollah fired rockets at cities in northern Israel. Israeli soldiers and Hezbollah fighters clashed in the city of Bint Jbeil.
US President Donald Trump stated that the US “has now started the process of clearing the Strait of Hormuz” and said that all of Iran’s mine-laying ships were sunk during the 40-day bombing campaign of the US and Israel.
There were other reports that US Navy warships passed west and turned east to ensure freedom of navigation, but Iran denied this. Iranian state television later said any US warship passing through Hormuz would be attacked within 30 minutes.
Other members of the US negotiating team in Islamabad include real estate developer Steve Witkoff, who is Trump’s personal envoy, and Jared Kushner, who does not hold an official position in the White House but is the president’s son-in-law.
A senior Pakistani official expressed optimism as the discussions began: “Like us, the whole world is waiting for a breakthrough and an end to the war. The talks are in a strong position because both delegations came to Islamabad with carte blanche from their capitals and backed away from extreme positions.”
UK-based Qatari newspaper Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, citing a Pakistani source, reported that China “may offer guarantees” to secure the deal. It was also claimed that a delegation from the country was traveling for talks.
However, other Pakistani sources later said that, contrary to the newspaper report, the Chinese delegation did not fly. “There was no need for them to come as the Chinese ambassador was in constant contact and participated in the talks,” one said.
Iranian media reported that the United States agreed to unfreeze $6 billion of Iranian assets frozen in Qatar, but this was immediately denied by American officials.
Direct talks between the Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors are planned to be held at the US state department in Washington DC. The Lebanese presidency said the two sides would discuss “the declaration of a ceasefire and the start date of negotiations between Lebanon and Israel under the auspices of the United States.”
Israel has expressed willingness to negotiate directly with the Lebanese government, of which Hezbollah is a part, but has said it is not ready to agree on a ceasefire with the pro-Iran proxy group. The two sides have been fighting since early March, when Hezbollah entered the war in support of Iran.
Hezbollah supporters held a rally in front of the prime minister’s office against the negotiations on Saturday afternoon; Protesters waved Hezbollah flags and pictures of the organization’s late chief Hassan Nasrallah.
The Lebanese army deployed troops to the region and warned that it would not tolerate any attempts to destabilize the country “at this sensitive moment.”
Internal tensions in Lebanon have been rising since Israeli bombing last month displaced more than 1.2 million people across the country. Disagreements over Lebanon’s relations with Israel have pitted Hezbollah against the government, threatening to further tear the divided country apart.
Lebanese prime minister Nawaf Salam announced that he has canceled his trip to Washington DC, where he was expected to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday to advance negotiations with Israel.
Mahmoud Kamati, deputy head of Hezbollah’s political council, warned in an interview on Saturday that the armed group is viewing the government in an increasingly confrontational light.
