Iran is refusing to send its negotiating team to Islamabad to continue talks this week until President Donald Trump lifts the U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, according to two Middle East officials briefed on the situation,granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
Trump, who hinted on Tuesday that high-level negotiations with Iran would resume “soon,” has given mixed signals about when, or whether, Vice President JD Vance would leave the White House for Pakistan. Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, are also meant to take part in the talks but do not appear to have left the United States.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump on Monday said he has no plans to lift the blockade until the two sides reach an agreement. That’s led to the current impasse – with both Tehran and Washington, as of Tuesday, refusing to blink.
The stalemate comes as Trump’s self-imposed deadline ticks ever closer. Trump gave the Iranians until Wednesday to agree to a deal or face a renewed American bombing campaign. And with the trip to Pakistan taking about 16 hours, the window for diplomacy was rapidly closing.
Trump said earlier Tuesday he was unwilling to extend the ceasefire deadline yet again.
The peace efforts remain fluid and it’s not clear whether some of the most recent demands from the Iranians or Americans are meant to be bluffs or are, in fact, red lines. The requirements and refusals could change at any time and Trump has been known to extend a deadline.
Vance was ready to head to Islamabad for a second round of negotiations when plans were put on hold. The White House has not responded to inquiries about whether the vice president would be leaving, or if he would be making the trip at all.
Iran has been frustrated in recent days by Trump’s decision to maintain the U.S. naval blockade of the critical waterway for Iranian vessels even after Tehran announced last Friday that it would reopen the strait following the announcement of a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. The blockade, according to the Iranians, violated the terms of the ceasefire.
Trump has asserted in several social media posts and interviews that he has the upper hand in the standoff with Iran, claiming that the country’s leaders had little choice but to make a deal to avoid another American bombing campaign.
