Iran’s top diplomat is expected to travel to Pakistan by this weekend for talks, two Pakistani officials told The Associated Press on Friday, raising hopes for revived negotiations in the Iran-U.S. war.
The officials did not provide further details and spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. Iran did not immediately acknowledge Araghchi’s trip.
Also, U.S. President Donald Trump says Israel and Lebanon have agreed to extend a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah by three weeks after talks at the White House on Thursday. The meeting was the second high-level negotiation between the two countries since last week. The initial 10-day ceasefire, which took effect last Friday, had been due to expire Monday.
Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency confirms Iranian foreign minister heading to Pakistan for talks
IRNA said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also would go to Oman and Russia.
The trip to Pakistan comes as officials there have been trying to get the United States and Iran to a second round of ceasefire negotiations.
The IRNA report said Araghchi’s trip, beginning Friday, is focused on “bilateral consultations and discussions on ongoing regional developments, as well as the latest situation surrounding the imposed war by the United States and Israel against Iran.”
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth calls war in Iran a ‘gift to the world’
Speaking to reporters Friday at the Pentagon, Hegseth said the U.S. blockade of Iranian shipping will continue “as long as it takes” to accomplish America’s “bold and dangerous” mission to end Iran’s threat to global security.
U.S. officials say that so far the blockade has turned back 34 ships, but ship-tracking data shows Iran has still been to move some of its sanctioned oil.
Source: WPLG
