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Top American and Iranian officials arrived in Pakistan on Saturday for the first round of talks on how to convert their two-week ceasefire into lasting peace, as officials publicly outlined preconditions and claimed leverage in negotiations.
The U.S. delegation has been led by Vice-President JD Vance and the Iranian delegation by parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. As they arrived in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital, the ceasefire appeared fragile.
Vance and Ghalibaf both met with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to Sharif’s office and Iranian media, though no direct U.S.-Iran talks had been announced as of mid-afternoon local time.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese state-run news agency reported that Israel was pressing ahead with strikes in southern Lebanon, killing at least three people. Iran said discussions would only take place if there is a ceasefire in Lebanon and blocked Iranian assets are released.
The war, which began when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, has killed at least 3,000 people in Iran, 1,953 in Lebanon, 23 in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. It has largely cut off the Persian Gulf from the global economy, sending energy prices soaring and damaging infrastructure in half a dozen countries in the region.
In Tehran, residents told The Associated Press they were skeptical yet hopeful about the talks after six weeks of airstrikes carved a path of destruction across their country.
Shahab Banitaba questioned whether the United States could be trusted to uphold any agreement. “If we get concrete and final results, there is still a chance that the deal falls through,” he said.
U.S. President Donald Trump posted repeatedly on social media leading up to Saturday, saying Iranian officials “have no cards” to negotiate with. He accused them of using the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for global energy supplies, for extortion. (Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz has proved its biggest strategic advantage in the war. Commercial vessels have avoided the strait, effectively blocking the passage of oil, natural gas and fertilizer.)
“The only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!” Trump wrote.
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With U.S. Vice-President JD Vance headed to Pakistan for peace talks with Iran, President Donald Trump again demanded Iran give up its nuclear program. For its part, Iran demanded the release of blocked assets and a halt to Israeli strikes in Lebanon.
In the hours leading up to the negotiations, Trump also wished Vance good luck. “We’ll find out what’s going on. They’re militarily defeated.”
Vance arrived in Islamabad at the head of a delegation that includes special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
Islamabad deserted
In Islamabad, the streets of a normally bustling capital were deserted on Saturday as security forces sealed roads ahead of the talks.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Foreign Affairs Minister Ishaq Dar, Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi received the U.S. delegation on Saturday.
The ministry said in a statement that Dar commended the U.S. commitment to achieving lasting regional and global peace and stability.
He expressed hope that the parties would engage constructively and reiterated Pakistan’s desire to continue facilitating efforts toward a lasting and durable resolution to the conflict.
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The U.S. has said Lebanon was never part of its ceasefire agreement with Iran and that Israel can continue its incursion and air assault into its northern neighbour in what Israel says is an attempt to root out Hezbollah fighters. That’s left thousands of civilians in cities like Beirut with a difficult situation: lose what shelter they have and flee or stay and risk missile and drone attacks.Pakistan sets up state-of-art media centre for talks
Pakistan’s government has set up a state-of-the-art media centre to facilitate Pakistani and foreign journalists covering the talks between the U.S. and Iran, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said.
Tarar told reporters that the facility at the Jinnah Convention Centre offers high-speed internet and a range of free services to support media coverage. Shuttle services have been arranged to transport journalists between the media centre and a hotel in the city’s main shopping mall.
Pakistan has announced visa-on-arrival for journalists and official delegations travelling from the U.S. and Iran for the negotiations, which have been dubbed the “Islamabad talks.”
Inside the media centre, rows of workstations equipped with laptops and charging points allow reporters to file stories. Large screens broadcast major domestic and international television channels. The facility also has designated areas for live stand-ups, press briefings and interviews.
Israel and Lebanon will have direct negotiations
Meanwhile, negotiations between Israel and Lebanon are expected to begin Tuesday in Washington, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun’s office said on Friday, as Israeli strikes killed at least three people on Saturday.
Israel wants the Lebanese government to assume responsibility for disarming Iranian-backed Hezbollah, much like was envisaged in a November 2024 ceasefire. But it is unclear whether Lebanon’s army can establish a monopoly on arms or confiscate weapons from the militant group, which has resisted efforts to curb its strength for decades.
The Lebanese National News Agency reported multiple Israeli strikes early Saturday in the south of the country, killing at least three people. The three were killed when an airstrike hit and destroyed a residential building in the town of Mayfadoun, in the southern province of Nabatieh, according to the agency.
Hezbollah, meanwhile, said it fired a barrage of rockets that targeted a military facility in northern Israel.