U.S. and Iranian officials were in Pakistan for high-level peace talks on Saturday as continued strikes in the Middle East and uncertainty about the Strait of Hormuz tested an already fragile cease-fire.
Reopening the strait, a vital oil route, is a central demand for the United States, but on Friday only two ships passed through the waterway, the fewest since the cease-fire began. U.S. officials said on Friday that Iran cannot locate all of the mines it laid in the strait.
In Lebanon, state media on Saturday reported renewed gunfire and Israeli military activity. Hours earlier, the Iranian delegation had said that the talks in Pakistan could not begin without a cease-fire in Lebanon. Israel and the United States say the current truce does not apply to Lebanon. Iran, Pakistan and a group of European countries have said that it does.
Washington and Tehran will enter the talks in Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, with significant differences about the conditions for a longer-term settlement.
A strained diplomatic history also casts a shadow over the talks. Twice in the past year, Iran was deep in indirect negotiations with the United States when talks fell apart and the United States and Israel attacked.
Iran and the White House, which is under increasing pressure to end the war, want to come away from any talks with an outcome each can cast as a victory.
Why are the talks in Pakistan?
Pakistan is acting as a mediator. It helped negotiate a two-week cease-fire last week, scoring a major diplomatic victory.
Pakistan shares deep bonds and a 565-mile border with Iran. It has also spent the last year wooing Mr. Trump — lavishing him with praise, nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize and striking a series of business deals with his administration.
Who is attending?
Vice President JD Vance is leading the U.S. delegation, which also includes Steve Witkoff, Mr. Trump’s special envoy, and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law.
Mr. Witkoff and Mr. Kushner led the last round of talks with Iranian officials in late February, when they concluded that Tehran was not open to a deal over its nuclear program. Veteran diplomats have raised concerns that Mr. Trump has sidelined skilled experts while placing complex Middle East diplomacy in the hands of a friend and family member who have backgrounds in real estate.
A team of at least 70 people is representing Iran at the talks — led by its speaker of Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, one of the highest-ranking officials left in the country — signaling how seriously it is taking the negotiations. The Iranian delegation, which arrived in Islamabad on Friday, includes experienced diplomats and negotiators, military officials and legal advisers, as well as experts in finance and sanctions.
It was unclear if the talks would involve face-to-face meetings between the U.S. and Iranian delegations.
What are the biggest issues?
Sanctions, shipping traffic, nuclear enrichment and Israel’s military attacks on Lebanon are on the agenda.
A central demand from the U.S. side is the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway that serves as a conduit for a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil and one-fifth of its natural gas. Iran has effectively blockaded the strait, and reopening it was the focus of an apocalyptic ultimatum by President Trump, who said he would wipe out a “whole civilization” if Tehran didn’t do so.
Since the current truce was struck, Iran’s military has signaled it plans to maintain control of the strait, while Mr. Trump has suggested that the United States might jointly control it with Iran. On Friday, he described Iran’s continued efforts to restrict shipping traffic as “extortion.”
Iran’s nuclear program is also likely to be a key issue. Iran wants the United States to accept its ability to enrich uranium, but Mr. Trump’s most recent statements reiterated calls for zero enrichment.
Mr. Ghalibaf, the leader of Iran’s delegation, said on Friday that negotiations with the United States could not start until there is a cease-fire in Lebanon and introduced what appeared to be a new demand for frozen Iranian assets to be released.
Iranians are also seeking a guarantee that the United States will not attack Iran again. That final condition would mean a permanent end to hostilities, and go further than the cease-fire that U.S. mediators are currently offering.
What is Iran’s 10-point proposal?
Iran released its peace proposal on Wednesday, outlining sweeping demands that would be difficult, if not impossible, to reconcile with U.S. aims.
Iran’s framework allows it to maintain control of the Strait of Hormuz, requires the United States to withdraw its forces from all bases in the region and preserves Iran’s right to pursue nuclear enrichment. It also calls for an end to Israeli attacks on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
Mr. Trump initially described the Iranian framework as “a workable basis on which to negotiate” an end to the war. But a White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive talks, said the demands in the 10-point plan released by Iran were not the same as the ones referenced by Mr. Trump.
What is in the U.S. proposal?
Many of Iran’s conditions are likely to conflict with a 15-point proposal that U.S. mediators sent to Iran through Pakistani intermediaries last month. Officials said that proposal addressed Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs, as well as maritime trade.
On Thursday, Mr. Trump referred to the 15 points and claimed that Iran had already agreed to many of them. But it was unclear how widely the plan had been shared among Iranian officials after it was first passed to Iran several weeks ago.
Ashley Ahn covers breaking news for The Times from New York.
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