Iran-US talks in Pakistan fail to reach agreement
- US Vice President JD Vance leaves Islamabad after talks collapse
- Main sticking point includes the issue of Iranian nuclear program, a major concern for Washington
After marathon negotiations in Islamabad, US Vice President JD Vance announced that the US and Iran have failed to reach an agreement to end the war in the Middle East. Vance, Donald Trump’s right-hand man, returns to the US on Sunday, April 12 after making what he called a “final and best possible offer” to Iran.
Mediating in over 20-hour discussions, Pakistan quickly urged for the two-week ceasefire to be maintained despite the failure to reach an agreement on a lasting truce. However, neither the US nor Iran has commented on whether the ceasefire will continue in the war that began on February 28 with the American-Israeli offensive on Iran.
Iran laments “unreasonable demands”
“We are returning to the US without reaching an agreement,” JD Vance stated in a brief press conference in Islamabad, where Americans and Iranians were negotiating since Saturday. The talks reached an unprecedented level between the two enemy countries since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. “I think this is worse news for Iran than it is for the United States of America,” added the American Vice President.
During his address, he lamented the lack of a “firm commitment” from Tehran to abandon its nuclear weapons program, a demand by Donald Trump since the conflict began. “We are leaving here with a very simple proposal, an approach that constitutes our final and best offer we can make. We will see if the Iranians accept it,” he added before quickly boarding his plane and leaving Pakistan.
Iran confirmed the end of discussions, attributing their failure to the “unreasonable demands” made by the US, as reported by the Iranian state television. “It was clear from the start that we should not expect to reach an agreement in a single negotiating session. No one expected that,” stated Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei, citing “an atmosphere of suspicion and distrust.”
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JD Vance hinted that he was giving Iran more time to consider the US offer. “The fact is simply that we need a formal commitment from them that they will not seek to acquire nuclear weapons and they will not seek to procure the means to rapidly manufacture one,” he said. “The question is simple: do we see a fundamental commitment from the Iranians not to develop a nuclear weapon – not only today, not only in two years, but in the long term? We have not seen that yet. We hope to see it,” he continued.
