Iran set for peace talks but doubts emerge over Lebanon
Although the United States and Iran will hold talks in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad to end their six-week war, Tehran has cast doubt on the negotiations, saying they cannot start without commitments and sanctions on Lebanon.
The US delegation, led by Vice President JD Vance and including President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, arrived in Islamabad on Saturday after a refueling stop in Paris.
The Iranian delegation led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqir Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Arakchi arrived on Friday.
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He said that negotiations will not start until these promises are fulfilled.
Israel and the US said the Lebanon campaign was not part of the Iran-US ceasefire. Tehran insists on this.
Qalibaf also said Iran was ready to reach a deal if Washington offered what he called a real deal and gave Iran its rights, Iranian state media reported.
The White House did not immediately comment on Iran’s demands, but Trump shared on social media that the only reason Iranians are alive is to negotiate a deal.
“The Iranians do not seem to realize that they have no other cards than short-term usurpation of the Earth using the International Waterways. The only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!” he said.
Speaking en route to Pakistan, Vance said he expected a positive outcome but added: “If they try to play us, then they’re going to find that the negotiating team isn’t that understanding.”
Islamabad was under an unprecedented lockdown on Saturday, with thousands of paramilitary personnel and army troops on the streets.
“We have implemented multi-layered security for this event based on coordination, intelligence and continuous monitoring for zero disruption and complete control,” Talal Chaudhry, Pakistan’s deputy interior minister, told Reuters.
Trump announced a two-week ceasefire in the war on Tuesday, halting U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran.
But this did not end Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which has caused the largest ever disruption to global energy supplies, or calm the parallel war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, and his Lebanese counterpart, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, will hold talks in Washington on Tuesday, Israeli and Lebanese officials said, amid conflicting statements about what those talks would include.
Israeli attacks continued in southern Lebanon on Friday.
President Joseph Aoun said in a statement that 13 members of the Lebanese state security forces were killed in the attack on the government building in the city of Nabatieh.
Hezbollah said in a statement on its Telegram channel that it fired salvoes of rockets at towns in northern Israel in response.
Lebanese officials said that hours after the ceasefire was declared, Israel launched the biggest attack of the war and killed more than 350 people in surprise attacks on populated areas.
Tehran’s agenda in the talks includes demands for major new concessions, including an end to sanctions that have crippled its economy for years.
It also wants recognition of its authority over the Strait of Hormuz, aiming to collect transit fees and control access in what would represent a major shift in regional power.
While Iran’s ships passed through the strait without encountering any obstacles on Friday, other countries’ ships were stuck inside.
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