U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance announced on Sunday that talks with Iran “did not result in an agreement,” stating that he was leaving Islamabad after presenting what he described as the “final and best offer” to the Iranian side.
An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that the two sides “reached agreement on several points during the talks, but differences remained over two key issues, preventing a comprehensive deal.”
Vance’s remarks suggested that Washington is still giving Tehran time to consider the proposal, as the United States had earlier announced a two-week pause in attacks pending the outcome of negotiations.
Speaking to reporters, Vance said that after 21 hours of discussions in the Pakistani capital, the U.S. delegation was departing after presenting its “final and best offer,” adding, “We’ll see whether the Iranians accept it.”
He noted that the core disagreement centers on nuclear weapons. Iran insists it does not seek to develop a nuclear bomb, while the United States and Israel have targeted sensitive Iranian facilities during the war that began on February 28, as well as during last year’s 12-day conflict.
Vance said, “The simple truth is that we need a firm commitment that they will not pursue a nuclear weapon, nor the capabilities that would allow them to quickly develop one.”
He added, “The basic question is whether we see a fundamental commitment from Iran not to develop a nuclear weapon—not just now, not just two years from now, but in the long term. We have not seen that yet, and we hope to.”
In his brief remarks at the Islamabad hotel hosting the talks, Vance did not elaborate on another major point of contention—the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil passes.
He pointed out that President Donald Trump, who said in Washington on Saturday that he was not particularly concerned whether a deal was reached, had been flexible during the talks. Vance noted that he spoke with Trump six times throughout the negotiations.
“I think we were very flexible. We were very cooperative. The president told us to come here in good faith and do everything possible to reach an agreement,” Vance said, adding, “We did that, but unfortunately, we were unable to make progress.”
The talks in Islamabad marked the first direct meeting between the United States and Iran in more than a decade, and the highest-level engagement since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The outcome is seen as crucial for determining the fate of the fragile two-week ceasefire and the potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed since the war began—disrupting global energy supplies and driving up oil prices.
Iran’s Tasnim News Agency reported that the talks ended without agreement, attributing the failure to what it described as “excessive U.S. demands.” Iranian media said key points of disagreement included the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran’s nuclear rights.
A Pakistani mediator said that Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner met with Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi for two hours before taking a break.
The Iranian delegation arrived on Friday, with members dressed in black in mourning for Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and others killed in the conflict.
Pakistan’s role as mediator marks a notable shift for a country that had been diplomatically isolated just a year ago.
Strait of Hormuz
As the talks began, the U.S. military said it had started “preparing conditions” to clear the Strait of Hormuz. It stated that two U.S. warships had passed through the strait and that preparations were underway for demining operations, while Iranian state media denied that any U.S. vessels had crossed the waterway.
Prior to the talks, a senior Iranian source told Reuters that the United States had agreed to release frozen Iranian assets held in Qatar and other foreign banks, though a U.S. official denied any such agreement.
Iranian officials and state media said Tehran is demanding control over the Strait of Hormuz, compensation for war losses, a ceasefire across the region—including Lebanon—and the release of frozen assets abroad. Iran also seeks to impose transit fees on vessels passing through the strait.
Trump’s stated objectives have evolved, but at a minimum, he is seeking to ensure freedom of navigation through the strait and impose restrictions on Iran’s uranium enrichment program to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon.
AFP
