Tehran and Washington have exchanged warnings and mistrust ahead of key talks in Islamabad.
Iranian and American delegations are meeting in Islamabad for what the prime minister of Pakistan has called a “make or break time” in an effort to turn a fragile ceasefire into a broad agreement.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf is leading the Iranian side, while US Vice President JD Vance is leading the American team.
Iran has arrived with a message of deep distrust. Ghalibaf said Tehran had it “good intentions,” despite Washington attacking Iran “twice in less than a year” in the middle of a conversation.
Vance echoed that tone, saying earlier that he hoped for productive talks while warning Iran against it “play” United States.
President Donald Trump, for his part, has rated confidence and threat in equal measure, saying the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened. “with or without” Tehran’s cooperation while reportedly preparing military options should the talks fall apart.
“We don’t need a backup plan… we’ve beaten them too much, our army is amazing,” Trump told reporters after greeting Vance “lucky”.
Key developments:
- Trump has outlined what a good deal with Iran looks like, saying: “No nuclear weapon. That’s 99% of it,” while adding that the Strait of Hormuz “will open automatically”.
- Iran’s team reflects on how Tehran is preparing for the talks, reaching far beyond narrow nuclear talks. Beside Ghalibaf is the Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi, who leads the political trend; Abdolnaser Hemmati, leading the economic side; Ali Akbar Ahmadian, in charge of the military file; and Esmaeil Baqaei, who deals with legal issues.
- The US side appears to be smaller, with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner also expected in Islamabad, although public reports have provided few confirmed details about the composition of the delegation.
- The Iranian delegation is scheduled to meet Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday morning. Indirect talks would reportedly begin later in the day if Israeli attacks on Lebanon stop.
- Israeli attacks have reportedly killed at least 1,953 people in Lebanon since March 2, including more than 300 killed in Wednesday’s attacks after the ceasefire was announced.
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