ISLAMABAD (AP) — President Donald Trump said he has told U.S. envoys not to go to Pakistan for more talks with Iran, shortly after Iran’s top diplomat left Islamabad late Saturday.
Trump added to Fox News: “They can call us anytime they want.” The White House on Friday said Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would be going to Pakistan's capital to attempt to revive ceasefire negotiations.
Iran ’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left Pakistan on Saturday evening, two Pakistani officials told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Araghchi had met with Pakistani Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif about what he called Iran’s red lines for negotiations, and said Tehran would engage with Pakistan’s mediation efforts “until a result is achieved.” Iran had said talks would be indirect.
An open-ended ceasefire has paused most fighting, but the economic fallout grows with global shipments of oil, liquefied natural gas, fertilizer and other supplies disrupted by the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian officials have openly asked how they can trust the U.S. after talks last year and early this year over Tehran’s nuclear program ended with it being attacked by the U.S. and Israel.
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ISLAMABAD (AP) — Iran 's foreign minister left Pakistan on Saturday evening, two Pakistani officials told The Associated Press, before any sign that U.S. envoys had even arrived for indirect talks on the fragile ceasefire.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was seen off at an airport, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. He had met with Pakistani Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif about what he called Iran’s red lines for negotiations, and said Tehran would engage with Pakistan’s mediation efforts “until a result is achieved.”
It was unclear when President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were due to arrive in Islamabad. The White House declined to comment.
An open-ended ceasefire has paused most fighting, but the economic fallout grows with global shipments of oil, liquefied natural gas, fertilizer and other supplies disrupted by the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian officials have openly asked how they can trust the U.S. after talks last year and early this year over Tehran’s nuclear program ended with it being attacked by the U.S. and Israel.