Pakistan signals Iran will attend 2nd round of talks despite rising tensions with US
Iranian delegation expected to arrive for much-publicised talks on Tuesday, according to Pakistani sources.
Iran will take part in the second round of talks with the US in Islamabad despite the latest hostilities in the Strait of Hormuz, two Pakistani sources familiar with the mediation process told Anadolu on Monday.
The Iranian delegation is likely to arrive in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, on Tuesday, according to the sources, although Tehran has not officially confirmed its participation in the possible talks yet.
Tehran is expected to be represented by the same delegation that took part in the first round of talks earlier this month, led by Parliament Speaker Bagher Qalibaf and included Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
The US delegation, likely to be led by US Vice President JD Vance, will include special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who are expected to arrive in Islamabad late Monday night or Tuesday, the sources said, adding that Vance may land separately.
There has been no official statement from Washington about the arrival schedule for the US delegation.
At least two US planes carrying "advance delegates" and security personnel already landed in Islamabad on Sunday, multiple Pakistani sources familiar with the developments told Anadolu.
Islamabad is in the spotlight again as it is set to hold a possible second round of high-stakes talks between the US and Iran in an attempt to bring a negotiated settlement to the weeks-long Middle East armed conflict.
In a related development, Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Monday visited the US Embassy in Islamabad to discuss the security measures regarding the upcoming talks, the state-run Pakistan Television reported.
A two-week fragile ceasefire between the two warring sides is set to expire on Wednesday.
Along with the capital, the adjoining garrison city of Rawalpindi is also under a security lockdown, with educational institutions closed, and thousands of security personnel deployed to maintain order during the upcoming high-profile talks.
Pakistan hosted the highest-level engagement between the US and Iran on April 11-12, the first since 1979 when they broke diplomatic ties, but the talks remained inconclusive. The negotiations, dubbed Islamabad talks, were held after Pakistan mediated between the two parties since the war began on Feb. 28 and secured a two-week ceasefire that became effective on April 8.
Already mounting tensions further heightened on Monday after the US seized an Iranian vessel and Tehran reclosed the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns about the Islamabad talks and disruptions of global supplies. US President Donald Trump said Sunday that American naval forces intercepted and disabled an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that attempted to breach the US naval blockade in the Gulf of Oman, with US Marines now holding the vessel in custody.
Iran warned that it would retaliate "soon" following the move, which it called a violation of a Pakistan-brokered two-week ceasefire that has largely held since it was announced on April 7.