WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump cancelled his envoys’ trip to Pakistan for peace talks with Iran on Saturday, saying there was no point “sitting around talking about nothing” but adding the war would not immediately resume.
Trump said he scrapped the visit after being unimpressed with Tehran’s negotiating position, adding that a revised proposal followed within minutes of his decision.
“They gave us a paper that should have been better and — interestingly — immediately, when I cancelled it, within 10 minutes, we got a new paper that was much better,” he told reporters, without elaborating.
The White House had said Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff were heading to Pakistan for talks with Iran aimed at moving “towards a deal,” but Trump told Fox News he had scrapped the trip.
“We have all the cards. They can call us anytime they want, but you’re not going to be making any more 18-hour flights to sit around talking about nothing,” the president said he had told his team.
Asked separately whether the cancellation meant a return to hostilities, Trump said: “No, it doesn’t mean that. We haven’t thought about it yet.”
Shortly beforehand, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrapped up a visit to Islamabad after meeting Pakistan’s military chief Asim Munir, a key mediator, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar.
Iran said Araghchi had left for Muscat and would return to Pakistan after meetings in Oman before travelling on to Russia for talks on ending the war launched by the United States and Israel on February 28.
Araghchi described his Pakistan trip as “very fruitful” but signalled scepticism over Washington’s intentions.
“Have yet to see if the US is truly serious about diplomacy,” he said.
Even before Trump’s move, prospects for talks were uncertain, with Iranian state television saying Araghchi had no plans to meet US officials and that Islamabad would act as a conduit for proposals.
Sharif said he had spoken to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and reiterated Islamabad’s commitment to facilitating “durable peace”.
