Iran Envoy Back in Pakistan as Trump Suggests Phone Talks

Iranian state media said Abbas Araghchi left Pakistan’s capital late the previous day, creating confusion there about an expected second round of talks, but returned on Sunday before heading to Moscow. He was previously based in Oman, which mediated the talks and is on the other side of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The White House announced last week that it would send envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad to follow up on historic face-to-face talks earlier this month. But shortly after Araghchi left on Saturday, Trump said he was canceling the mission due to a lack of progress with Iran.

“We can talk if they want, but we’re not sending people,” Trump told Fox News on Sunday. He previously said on social media: “All they have to do is call!!!”

Two Pakistani officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, said indirect talks were continuing between the two sides.

Trump last week indefinitely extended the ceasefire that the United States and Iran agreed to on April 7, which largely halted the fighting that began with joint U.S.-Israeli attacks on February 28. But a permanent solution to the war that has killed thousands of people and shaken the global economy remains elusive.

Strait of Hormuz at center of Iran row in Oman A stalemate has continued in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global waterway through which one-fifth of the world’s oil passes, as Iran restricts movement through the strait and the United States imposes a blockade of Iranian ports.

Iran wants to persuade Oman to support a mechanism that would collect transit fees from ships passing through the strait, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil passes in peacetime, according to a regional official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter.

Oman’s reaction was not immediately clear.

The official, who is involved in mediation efforts, also said Iran insists on ending the US blockade before a new round of negotiations and Pakistan-led mediators are trying to bridge significant gaps between the countries.

Araghchi also spoke by phone with his counterparts in Qatar and Saudi Arabia on Sunday.

Even before Saturday’s developments, Iran’s foreign ministry had said any talks would be indirect and Pakistani officials would act as mediators; This reflects Tehran’s cautious stance following indirect talks last year and earlier this year that resulted in Iran being attacked by the US and Israel.

Trump said Iran offered a ‘much better’ offer. Economic negativity is mounting two months into the war, as global shipments of oil, liquefied natural gas, fertilizer and other materials are disrupted due to the near closure of the strategic strait.

Both sides continued to make military threats. Iran’s joint military command warned on Saturday that it would face a “strong response” if the “US continues its aggressive military actions, including naval blockades, banditry and piracy.”

Trump last week ordered the military to “shoot and kill” small boats that might plant mines in the waterway.

Trump told reporters ahead of a security incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday that Iran sent a “much better” offer within 10 minutes of Witkoff and Kushner canceling their trip to Islamabad.

He did not give details, but emphasized that one of the conditions was that Iran “do not have nuclear weapons”. The status of Iran’s enriched uranium has long been at the center of tensions. According to the UN nuclear watchdog, Tehran has 440 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium enriched to 60% purity; it’s a short, technical step up from weapons-grade levels.

Syed Mohammad Ali, an independent political analyst in Pakistan, said the delay in talks should not be seen as a setback and indirect talks were progressing. He said tensions between Washington and Tehran cannot be eased overnight and the negotiation process requires patience.

“But the good thing is that the ceasefire continues and both sides have the desire to end the conflict in a way that does not backfire on their countries,” Ali said.

The death toll is rising even as fragile ceasefires continue. Since the start of the war, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran and at least 2,509 in Lebanon, where the Israel-Hezbollah conflict resumed two days after the start of the Iran war.

Additionally, 23 people were killed in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab countries. 15 Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, 13 US soldiers in the region and 6 UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon were killed.

Another ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese militant Hezbollah group was also extended by three weeks. Hezbollah did not participate in diplomacy mediated by Washington.

Oil prices rose again as Pakistan talks failed to take place. When the market opened on Sunday, oil prices rose as traders received news that ceasefire talks had stalled.

West Texas Intermediate, a light, sweet crude oil produced by the United States, is selling for $96.50 a barrel on Sunday, up 2% since the market closed on Friday. The price was 44% higher than before the start of the Iran war, when oil was selling for about $67 per barrel.

Brent crude, the international standard, was trading at $107.75 a barrel on Sunday; That’s up nearly 3% since Friday, when oil was selling for $72 a barrel, and 48% since the start of the war.

Oil prices have risen steadily since the start of the war, and tankers full of crude oil have become stranded in the Persian Gulf and unable to pass safely through the Strait of Hormuz.