Pakistan receives confirmation from US, Iran talks to take place — agency

Lead

Pakistan has intensified diplomatic contacts with the United States and Iran in an effort to convene further talks aimed at ending their conflict, according to multiple agency reports. Accounts differ on whether Tehran has formally confirmed participation even as a two-week ceasefire nears its expiration and US President Donald Trump has ruled out extending the truce. Several outlets report that both sides have indicated willingness to meet again in Islamabad, with US Vice President JD Vance expected to lead the American side.

The conflict escalated after the United States and Israel began a large-scale operation against Iran on February 28, as reported by TASS citing earlier coverage. A mutual ceasefire announced by Trump on April 7 created a window for diplomacy. Earlier talks in the Pakistani capital on April 11 did not produce a long-term settlement, according to TASS and other accounts that described unresolved contradictions between the parties.

Coverage Comparison

Reporting across outlets reflects both shared elements and clear divergences on confirmation and timing. TASS, citing Associated Press reports of Pakistani authorities, stated that Iran and the United States have confirmed to Pakistan that they will hold a new round of talks in Islamabad. One TASS dispatch said Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and US Vice President JD Vance were expected to arrive in Islamabad on Wednesday morning, while another noted stepped-up Pakistani preparations, heightened security around a potential meeting hotel, closed roads, and restricted access in the capital. That reporting also recalled that the United States began a naval blockade of Iran on April 13.

ABC Australia presented a more cautious picture, reporting that Iran has still not confirmed whether it will send a delegation for another round of peace talks as the ceasefire end looms. According to ABC, the two-week ceasefire was due to expire later that night local time, and Trump has ruled out a further extension, saying military action would resume if no deal is struck. ABC noted that Vance, described as leading the American delegation and previously due to depart for Islamabad, remained in Washington at the time of its report to participate in additional White House policy meetings, according to an official statement relayed via AFP. ABC also reported continuing fighting between Hezbollah and Israel in Lebanon and, in a separate development, that Iranian authorities executed a man accused of helping set fire to a major mosque in Tehran during January protests and of working with Israel’s Mossad; the judiciary’s Mizan news agency was cited, and the case was described as the eighth such execution linked to those demonstrations since mid-March.

Yonhap News, in an earlier dispatch dated around the start of the ceasefire window, quoted White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announcing that the United States and Iran would hold their first round of negotiations in Pakistan. Leavitt said the president was dispatching a negotiating team led by Vice President JD Vance, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner for talks, with the first round set for Saturday morning local time in Islamabad. That account framed the meeting as an initial effort to end the war that began in late February, while noting lingering uncertainty over whether differences could be bridged.

TASS reporting also referenced CNN sources indicating a second round on the morning of April 22 with Vance leading the US side, and an Al-Hadath television report that delegations would arrive simultaneously. The same coverage noted Iran had earlier said it had not yet decided on participation, aligning in part with the uncertainty highlighted by ABC Australia. Across the sources, Pakistan’s role as host and facilitator is consistently described, while the status of Iranian confirmation and the exact calendar for any new sitting remain points of divergence.

Key Claims

• The United States and Iran are expected to hold negotiations in Pakistan aimed at ending their conflict, a claim carried across several outlets including Yonhap and TASS.
• According to Yonhap citing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, an early round was scheduled for Saturday morning local time in Islamabad, with the US team led by Vice President JD Vance and including Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
• TASS, citing Associated Press and Pakistani authorities, reported that Iran and the US confirmed a new round in Islamabad, with Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Vance expected to arrive on Wednesday morning; other TASS material placed Pakistani efforts around April 21 and referenced CNN on a possible April 22 morning session.
• ABC Australia reported that Iran has not confirmed whether it will send a delegation, that the two-week ceasefire was ending, and that President Trump ruled out further extension of the truce.
• Multiple sources state that US-Iran talks held in Islamabad on April 11 failed to produce a long-term settlement because of unresolved contradictions.
• TASS reported that the US and Israel started a large-scale operation against Iran on February 28 and that the US began a naval blockade of Iran on April 13.
• ABC Australia reported continued fighting between Hezbollah and Israel in Lebanon and the execution in Iran of a man accused in connection with January protest-related arson at a Tehran mosque.
• Pakistani authorities have stepped up diplomatic contacts and security preparations in Islamabad, according to TASS citing Associated Press sources.

Perspectives

From the US official side, as conveyed through White House statements reported by Yonhap and ABC, the administration has publicly named a senior negotiating team under Vice President Vance and linked the diplomatic track to the ceasefire window while leaving open the possibility of resumed military action if no agreement is reached. Trump’s position against extending the truce, as reported by ABC, underscores a stated preference for a deal within the existing timeframe.

Pakistani authorities, according to TASS citing Associated Press, have positioned themselves as active facilitators, increasing contacts with both sides, preparing venues, and tightening security in the capital even when formal confirmations remained incomplete. This framing presents Islamabad as seeking to lock in a second round after the inconclusive April 11 sessions.

Iranian positioning appears more conditional in the available reporting. ABC Australia emphasized the absence of confirmation that a delegation would be sent, while TASS noted both an earlier Iranian statement that no decision had been made and later claims of confirmation relayed through Pakistani channels, including the possible participation of parliament speaker Ghalibaf, who had led the Iranian side on April 11. These accounts together suggest internal or tactical deliberation in Tehran as the truce deadline approached.

Regional and secondary developments add context without resolving the core diplomatic uncertainty. ABC’s references to ongoing Hezbollah-Israel fighting in Lebanon and to domestic judicial actions inside Iran illustrate parallel pressures. Earlier military steps, including the February 28 operation and the mid-April naval blockade reported by TASS, form the backdrop against which the ceasefire and talks were attempted.

As of the latest extracts, the central open questions remain whether both delegations will in fact convene in Islamabad, on what exact schedule, and whether any session can move beyond the contradictions that stalled the April 11 rounds before the ceasefire expires and potential renewed military activity begins.