Pakistan’s Army Chief and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir (3rd R) meets with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (3rd L) upon his arrival in Islamabad on April 25, 2026.
– | Afp | Getty Images
President Donald Trump on Saturday said he has canceled plans to send U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan after Iran’s chief negotiator left Islamabad after speaking only to Pakistani officials.
Trump said he canceled the U.S. delegation’s trip to Islamabad, Pakistan, to meet with the Iranians.
“Too much time wasted on traveling, too much work! Besides which, there is tremendous infighting and confusion within their “leadership,” the president wrote in a post on Truth Social. “Nobody knows who is in charge, including them. Also, we have all the cards; they have none! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!
Before boarding Air Force One for a return flight to Washington, Trump said Iran had improved an offer to resolve the conflict after he canceled the visit, “but not enough.”
Witkoff and Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, had been scheduled to head to Pakistan earlier in the day to engage in “direct talks” with their Iranian counterparts, according to the White House.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with the head of Pakistan’s military, Asim Munir, the Iranian embassy in Pakistan said in a post on X on Saturday. A senior Iranian official said his government’s representatives had no plans to meet with U.S. negotiators.
“No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the U.S. Iran’s observations would be conveyed to Pakistan,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said in a post on X late Friday.
Reuters, citing two Pakistani government sources, said the Iranian delegation had flown out of the country on Saturday.
Araghchi, in a post on X, praised Pakistani leaders but appeared to dismiss talks with the Americans.
“Very fruitful visit to Pakistan, whose good offices and brotherly efforts to bring back peace to our region we very much value,” he wrote. “Shared Iran’s position concerning workable framework to permanently end the war on Iran. Have yet to see if the U.S. is truly serious about diplomacy.”
Trump had told Reuters in a phone call on Friday that Iran would be “making an offer,” adding that he did not yet know what it would be and that “we’ll have to see.”
Araghchi, earlier Friday, said he was “embarking on a timely tour” of Islamabad, Muscat and Moscow in order to “closely coordinate with our partners on bilateral matters and consult on regional developments.” He made no remarks indicating that a meeting with U.S. officials was planned.
The first round of peace talks, held two weeks ago in Islamabad and led on the U.S. side by Vice President JD Vance ended with no deal. Vance was not expected to accompany Witkoff and Kushner on Saturday’s trip to Pakistan.
A U.S. delegation, including Vance, had been expected to travel to Pakistan earlier this week for further negotiations, but the trip was delayed after Iranian officials reportedly said they would not attend.
Much of the mutual disagreement has centered on the Strait of Hormuz, the major oil-shipping route that has seen traffic slow to a trickle amid Iranian threats and, as of last week, a retaliatory U.S. naval blockade.
Trump told Reuters that the U.S. will not lift its blockade of Iranian ports until a deal with Iran is struck.
Oil waiver
The U.S. is also maintaining other forms of economic pressure on Tehran.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told The Associated Press on Friday that the U.S. does not plan to renew a one-time waiver allowing the purchase of Iranian oil at sea.
“Not the Iranians,” Bessent said. “We have the blockade, and there’s no oil coming out.”
“And we think in the next two, three days, they’re going to have to start shuttering production, which will be very bad for their wells.”
Bessent also said the U.S. does not plan to renew a waiver allowing the purchase of Russian oil and petroleum products that are currently at sea, according to the AP.
Meanwhile, the U.S. said it has sanctioned Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery, an independent “teapot” oil refinery in China, for buying Iranian oil products.
“China-based independent teapot refineries continue to play a vital role in sustaining Iran’s oil economy, and Hengli is one of Iran’s largest customers for crude oil and other petroleum products, having purchased billions of dollars’ worth of Iranian petroleum,” the Treasury Department said in a statement.
The tensions have further strained an already-fragile ceasefire, which was announced on April 7 amid threats by Trump that Iran’s “whole civilization will die” unless a deal is struck.
Despite the continued stress in the strait, Trump on Tuesday unilaterally extended the ceasefire shortly before it was set to expire.
After the war began on Feb. 28, the Trump administration repeatedly said it expected the operation to be brief, concluding within four to six weeks.
Since passing that deadline, the administration has reframed its timeline, while stressing that prior U.S. conflicts have lasted far longer.
“Unlike the endless wars of the past that dragged on for years and for decades with little to show for it, Operation Epic Fury has delivered a decisive military result in just weeks,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at a press briefing Friday morning.
— CNBC’s Terri Cullen, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.