Plans for a new round of indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran were disrupted after U.S. President Donald Trump decided at the last moment to cancel his delegation’s trip to Pakistan. The decision comes amid a declared strategy of maintaining a “position of strength” toward Iran, with the Washington leader considering lengthy diplomatic travel pointless without concrete guarantees of progress. At the same time, the move coincided with the departure of Iran’s foreign minister from Islamabad, signalling a new deadlock in the indirect dialogue between the two sides.
Talks Stalled Before They Began
U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were expected to travel to Pakistan for a second round of indirect discussions with Iran. However, the trip was cancelled just before departure.
The decision was explained by Donald Trump during an interview with Fox News, where he stressed that Washington sees little value in negotiations without clear prospects for results.
Direct Message to Iran
In his remarks, Donald Trump insisted that the United States holds the advantage and that the initiative for dialogue should come from Iran.
“I told my people a short while ago, when they were preparing to leave: ‘No, you are not taking an 18-hour flight to go there.’ We hold all the cards. They (the Iranians) can call us whenever they wish, but you will not be making 18-hour trips just to sit around and talk about nothing,” President Trump told Fox News.
Iranian Official Leaves Pakistan
Washington’s decision coincided with the departure of Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi from Islamabad.
According to diplomatic sources, he left Pakistan after a series of meetings with civilian and military officials, heading to Oman. Araghchi had previously denied the possibility of direct meetings with American representatives and did not wait for the arrival of the U.S. delegation.