Delegations from the US and Iran touched down in Islamabad, Pakistan on Saturday morning for their first meeting to negotiate an end to the war.
The White House confirmed that Vice President JD Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were all there on behalf of the US, and would meet face-to-face with Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi.
After more than six hours of talks between the two delegations, there was scant news on whether progress had been made. Pakistani officials were telling various news organisations that the mood remained largely positive but the Strait of Hormuz was being reported as a key sticking point. The ceasefire talks have continued into the early hours of Sunday morning, and are expected to extend further.
The two sides issued plans for discussion prior to the talks. These have not been made public, but it is likely that the key issues are the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s nuclear programme and Lebanon, where fatal Israeli strikes show no sign of letting up.
A conditional ceasefire had been agreed on Tuesday which gives the powers a two week deadline to come to an agreement. But it all got off to a rocky start, even before representatives were sat at the negotiating table, with misinformation, threats, and clear high stakes.
Strait of Hormuz
As part of the conditional two-week ceasefire, Iran has agreed to allow shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, but an alert that US military vessels had entered the waterway prompted a deadline to remove them or risk the peace deal.
On Saturday afternoon, Trump said that the US had begun the process of “clearing out” the Strait of Hormuz, as he also took the opportunity to lash out at allies who he has deemed to have given the US insufficient support.
“We’re clearing the Strait as a favour to Countries all over the world”, he wrote on Truth Social, “including China, Japan, South Korea, France, Germany, and many others. Incredibly, they don’t have the courage or will to do this work themselves”.
But Iran reportedly informed Pakistan that its forces would target a US Navy vessel in the Strait within 30 minutes if movements continued, prompting it to turn back, according to an Iranian military official who was speaking to state TV.
Meanwhile, a US official said that no such warning had been received, and that the warships had crossed the Strait of Hormuz and made their way back.
The conflicting reports have prompted mistrust and confusion, whilst both powers have continued to publicly push their separate versions of events.
Lebanon
Asides from Iran itself, Lebanon has been hit hardest since the war began, with its health ministry reporting a death toll of more than 2,000 on Saturday. A further 6,400 people have been wounded, and 1.2million displaced from their homes.
There has been confusion over whether the ceasefire was intended to apply to Lebanon, as Israeli strikes continued following Tuesday’s announcement.
Pakistan – the key mediator between Iran and the US – said that the conditional ceasefire did cover Lebanon, but Israel and the US have both said that the country does not form part of the agreement.
Men carry the coffin of one of thirteen government security forces soldiers that were killed on April 10, when an Israeli airstrike struck their building, during their funeral ceremony on April 11, 2026 in Sidon, Lebanon. (Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images)More than one hundred people have been killed by Israeli attacks in just the last three days, and tension over the ongoing military campaign could derail diplomatic efforts.
An Iranian minister told the BBC that the strikes were a “grave violation” of the ceasefire agreement.
Diplomats from Israel and Lebanon are due to meet next week, although Nawaf Salam, the Lebanese prime minister has postponed his planned visit to the US, citing the ongoing domestic concerns.
Iranian assets
As part of Iran’s 10-point plan issued to the US, Iran called for the release of all Iranian funds and frozen assets that are currently held by the Americans.
Indeed, Iran’s speaker of parliament Ghalibaf said that his delegation would not even begin negotiations until the US had carried this out.
The funds held in Qatar were originally frozen in 2018. The $6bn had been due for release in 2023 as part of a US-Iranian prisoner swap but the funds were again frozen by the administration of President Joe Biden following the 7 October, 2023 attacks on Israel by Iran’s ally, the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Caption: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif meets with Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (Pakistan’s Prime Minister Office/Handout via Reuters)US officials said at the time that Iran would not be able to access the money for the foreseeable future, stressing that Washington retained the right to completely freeze the account.
Later, there were reports from Iran that the assets had been unfrozen – an announcement which would have reflected badly on Trump as he would have found it difficult to justify such a decision to supporters. But an American official quickly denied that Iranian assets had been released.
Whilst talks continue in Pakistan, Trump has consistently repeated claims that the US has “destroyed” Iran’s navy, air force, and leadership.
The US President has said he is getting “lots of reports” from the talks in Islamabad, but added: “Regardless what happens, we win. We’ve totally defeated that country.”
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