US-Iran Talks in Islamabad: Five Things to Know

A fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran faces a pivotal test in Islamabad, where the two sides are holding their highest-level talks in years in a Pakistan-brokered effort to turn a two-week pause in fighting into a durable end to a war that has shaken global energy markets.

Here are five things to know about the Islamabad talks.

The conflict that set the stage

On 28 February, the US and Israel carried out coordinated strikes that killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and hit Iran’s military and nuclear infrastructure, leaving more than 2,000 people dead over five weeks.

On 8 April, Washington and Tehran agreed to a two-week ceasefire brokered by Pakistan. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said negotiations could continue for as long as 15 days. The ceasefire is due to expire ON 22 April.

Pakistan’s unexpected central role

Pakistani army soldiers arrive for deployment at the Red Zone area of Islamabad

Pakistan, a country more often in the global spotlight for militancy and a fragile economy, is now hosting the first negotiations between Washington and Tehran since the war erupted — a striking turn for a state long seen primarily through the prism of security risks.

It is not a venue that typically stages diplomacy on this scale.

But Pakistan’s appeal as a mediator lies in the breadth of its diplomatic relationships.

Iran was the first country to recognise Pakistan after independence in 1947, and the neighbours share a 900-kilometre (560-mile) border as well as deep historical, cultural and religious links. Pakistan is also home to more than 20 million Shia Muslims, the world’s second-largest such population after Iran.

At the same time, Islamabad has maintained close ties with Washington, Riyadh and Beijing.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar travelled to Beijing at the end of March for talks with Wang Yi, who endorsed Islamabad’s mediation push as “in keeping with the common interests of all parties”.

Donald Trump also said China played a role in bringing Iran to the table, a version of events Pakistani officials support.

“On ceasefire night, hopes were fading, but China stepped in and convinced Iran to agree to a preliminary ceasefire,” a senior Pakistani official familiar with the negotiations told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“While our efforts were central, we were falling short of a breakthrough, which was ultimately achieved after Beijing persuaded the Iranians.”

What’s being negotiated?

The divide between the two camps remains wide.

Washington’s reported 15-point proposal focuses on Iran’s enriched uranium, ballistic missiles, sanctions relief and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Tehran has responded with a 10-point plan demanding control over the strait, a toll for vessels crossing the strait, an end to all regional military operations and the lifting of all sanctions.

Lebanon has emerged as another major stumbling block. Israel kept up strikes there targeting Hezbollah after the ceasefire took effect, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s claim that the truce covered Lebanon.

US Vice President JD Vance struck a more conciliatory note, saying there may have been a “legitimate misunderstanding” on Iran’s part that Lebanon would be included.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian warned on X that Israel’s attacks on Lebanon had made the negotiations “meaningless”.

“Our hands remain on the trigger. Iran will never forsake its Lebanese brothers and sisters.”

Who is at the table?

JD Vance said there may have been a ‘legitimate misunderstanding’ from Iran that Lebanon would be included

Mr Vance is set to head the US delegation, alongside special envoy Steve Witkoff and presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner.

It represents the most senior US engagement with Iran since Secretary of State John Kerry negotiated the 2015 nuclear deal. Before the war derailed the process, Mr Witkoff had held several rounds of Oman-mediated talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

Iran’s delegation is expected to be led by parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Araghchi.

Mr Ghalibaf is a former IRGC commander, and it is still unclear whether any active IRGC representative will be present.

Islamabad under tight security

The talks are taking place in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.

Officials have revealed little about the arrangements and have not confirmed the venue. Pakistan’s leader Sharif said the talks would be held on Friday, while the White House said the opening round would begin tomorrow.

The Serena Hotel, next to the foreign ministry in the capital’s high-security Red Zone, told guests to leave on Wednesday. Later that day, authorities announced a two-day public holiday for yesterday and today.

The negotiations are expected to be indirect, with the two sides in separate rooms and Pakistani officials carrying proposals back and forth — the same format used in earlier Oman-mediated rounds.

Beyond the meeting rooms, Islamabad’s streets have filled with armed security personnel in military fatigues, traffic diversions and police checkpoints. The capital, quiet at the best of times, was quieter still on Friday.