The deadline for the end of the US-Iran ceasefire is nearing, but the end of the war that began on February 28 is still nowhere in sight.
US President Donald Trump has been flipping back and forth across the negotiation spectrum, from threats to assurances. Iranian chief negotiator Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, however, has been adamant. He says Tehran won’t talk with “a gun to our heads”.
Earlier in the day, two regional officials said Washington and Tehran had signalled they would hold a second round of talks, with Vice President JD Vance leading the US team and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf as its top negotiator.
Trump on Tuesday threatened to bomb Iran if they do not agree to a deal before the end of the two-week ceasefire on Wednesday, even as Pakistan urged the two sides to extend the truce and give diplomacy a chance.
Trump had indicated that his team of negotiators could reach Islamabad by Monday night for talks, while the Iranian delegation was also expected to travel there. So far, there has been no sign of any peace-maker in Islamabad.
On Tuesday, the White House said that JD Vance is “yet to depart” for Islamabad.
Pakistan’s information minister, Attaullah Tarar, said on Tuesday evening that his country was still waiting for a formal response from Iran on its participation in the second round of talks with the US.
Underlining that the ceasefire ends at 4:50 am PST (5:20 am IST) on Wednesday, he said, “Decision from Iran to attend the talks before the end of the two-week ceasefire is critical.”
Trump says ready for ‘military action’
Donald Trump said that if the ceasefire ends without an agreement, he is prepared to resume attacking Iran.
“I expect to be bombing because I think that’s a better attitude to go in with,” he told CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box’.
When asked if he would extend the ceasefire with Iran to allow time for the peace talks to reach a deal to end the war, Trump said, “Well, I don’t want to do that.”
“They have to negotiate. And, you know, the one thing I’ll say is this: Iran can get themselves on a very good footing. If they make a deal, they can make themselves into a strong nation again, a wonderful nation again,” he added.
The Republican leader said he thinks the US is “going to end up with a great deal” with Iran to end the weeks-long war.
“I think they have no choice,” Trump said when asked about his expectations from the second round of negotiations with Iran.
“We’ve taken out their navy, we’ve taken out their air force, we’ve taken out their leaders,” he said.
“We’ve taken out their leaders, frankly, which does complicate things in one way, but these leaders are much more rational,” Trump said. “It is regime change, no matter what you want to call it, which is not something I said I was going to do, but I’ve done it indirectly.”
Pakistan trying to cool down the tempers
The first round of the US-Iran talks held on 11 and 12 April failed to yield the desired results for the parties, prompting host Pakistan to step up efforts to cool tempers and raise hopes for another round of dialogue.
Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday urged the two sides to extend the two-week ceasefire and give diplomacy a chance.
Dar, who is also the foreign minister, met US Chargé d’Affaires Natalie A Baker in Islamabad and discussed recent regional developments.
Dar underscored Pakistan’s consistent emphasis on dialogue and diplomacy as the only viable means to address challenges and achieve lasting regional peace and stability, the foreign office said in a statement.
“He stressed the need for engagement between the United States and Iran, urged both sides to consider extending the ceasefire, and to give dialogue and diplomacy a chance,” it said.
Pakistan’s interior minister, Mohsin Naqvi, also met the envoys of the US and Iran on Tuesday and discussed matters related to the peace talks.
Separately, Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Jiang Zaidong called on Dar and discussed the latest regional developments, Islamabad’s foreign office statement added.
Despite ambiguity, Trump expressed confidence that peace talks with Iran would go ahead, and he wished for an agreement to prevent further oil price rises and stock market shocks, but insisted Iran cannot have the means to develop a nuclear weapon.
Pakistan launched preparations on Sunday by deploying over 10,000 personnel to provide security to the foreign delegates.
Some reports even suggested that security teams from the two countries were already in the Pakistani capital to oversee preparations.
What next?
Citing three US sources, American news outlet Axios earlier reported that Vice President JD Vance is expected to depart for Islamabad by Tuesday morning for talks with Iran over a potential deal to end the war. Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are likely to join Vance.
Tehran hopes to leverage its control of the Strait of Hormuz to strike a deal that averts a restart of the war, eases sanctions, but does not impede its nuclear program.
The situation remains fluid amid heated rhetoric from both sides. Still, there is hope that the second round will be held, or at least that the ceasefire, which ends on Wednesday, will be extended.
The fragile ceasefire between the US and Iran was tested once again on Sunday when a US guided-missile destroyer fired on and seized an Iranian cargo ship after it tried to get past the US naval blockade in the Gulf of Oman, further angering the Iranians.
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