Donald Trump said Tuesday that US-Iranian peace talks could resume in Islamabad over the next two days, adding that Pakistan’s army chief was arranging the effort and doing “a great job.”
Trump’s comments came during an interview Tuesday with a New York Post reporter who had traveled to Islamabad for the first round of ceasefire talks over the weekend. The reporter said Trump called her back “with an update,” after previously discussing the potential for negotiations.
“You should stay there, really, because something could be happening over the next two days, and we’re more inclined to go there,” Trump told the reporter. He added that Field Marshal Asim Munir — a powerful figure in Pakistan and closely connected to both Washington and Tehran — was key to keeping the talks moving. “He’s fantastic, and therefore it’s more likely that we go back there,” Trump said.
Munir’s reported influence in the mediation effort is tied to his relationships, including with Trump, who has called him his “favourite field marshal,” and with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. A Pakistani official told Misryoum newsroom reported that talks were expected to restart soon, though it “may take a day or two longer than Trump suggested.”
“The game is on,” the official said, as Islamabad raced to arrange a meeting date that leaves enough time for negotiations before the two-week ceasefire ends on Wednesday 22 April.
The renewed push comes after 21 hours of talks over the weekend that ended with US vice president JD Vance walking out on Sunday morning. Vance said Iran failed to make an “affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon.” After that breakdown, Trump declared a US naval blockade on ships using Iranian ports in the Gulf, framing it as pressure on Iran’s economy. The move also mirrored Iran’s near-total closure of the strait of Hormuz to ships using other Gulf ports after the US-Israeli attack began on 28 February.
Misryoum newsroom reported that US Central Command said that over a 24-hour period, “no ships made it past the US blockade and six merchant vessels complied with direction from US forces to turn around to re-enter an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman.” Independent reports confirmed that some tankers approaching the strait turned around; one tanker, the Rich Starry, reversed course again and passed through the waterway. And yes, you could feel the market nerves in the background—like the faint click of a broadcast screen in the room during briefings, traders watching every headline as crude prices swung.
The closure of the strait has helped drive oil prices above $100 a barrel, though Misryoum newsroom reported that crude dipped to about $95 following Tuesday reports of a possible second round of talks.
Away from the Gulf, Israel and Lebanon have also been in Washington for “unprecedented negotiations” tied to the cross-border conflict triggered after the US-Israeli attack on Iran. Hezbollah, which sided with Iran, launched rockets at Israel, which responded with intense bombardment of Beirut and other cities, and then launched an invasion of southern Lebanon. Hezbollah has said it will not abide by any agreements made by Israeli and Lebanese government negotiators in Washington.
On whether talks could restart, Vance was open to the idea. Misryoum newsroom reported he told Fox News on Monday evening that “The big question from here on out is whether Iranians will have enough flexibility,” adding that Iran showed some flexibility in Islamabad but “didn’t move far enough.” He said the question of whether there would be additional talks was “best put to the Iranians.”
Misryoum editorial desk noted that US reports on the Islamabad talks pointed to a key sticking point: a demand from Vance’s delegation for a 20-year suspension of Iran’s uranium enrichment. Iran reportedly offered a shorter moratorium—less than 10 years. Misryoum analysis indicates Iran’s official position criticized what it called maximalist US demands, saying “Iran did not surrender at the battlefield, neither will it surrender behind the table.” Where negotiations stood when the Islamabad meeting ended was also unclear after the weekend discussions on the major proliferation concern of Iran’s stockpile of highly-enriched uranium, believed to be buried in deep shafts under mountains in central Iran.
Another complication: a Pakistani official told Misryoum newsroom reported that Iran was insisting Vance lead the Iranian delegation to any future talks, since Tehran does not trust Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as reliable interlocutors. Senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey were also in Islamabad on Tuesday for talks with Pakistani officials on next moves.
Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, is due to depart on Wednesday for a regional trip to Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar to build support for the peace process, seek help with proposals to reopen the strait of Hormuz, and discuss Iran’s demand for war reparations. His travel plans might have to be cut short if there’s a quick return to the negotiating table. And honestly, the way Trump framed the timing—“over the next two days”—might be less of a promise and more of a signal, depending on what Islamabad can pull together before the ceasefire clock runs out.
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