A planned U.S. diplomatic push in Pakistan stalled after President Trump canceled a trip by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for new talks with Iran, even as Iran’s foreign minister returned to Islamabad and then traveled on to Russia as part of a regional tour aimed at ending the war.
The reversal left Pakistan-led mediation in a fragile position at a moment when the conflict is reaching beyond the battlefield: oil prices have risen, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted, and fighting between Israel and Hezbollah has continued despite a ceasefire extension announced by Trump.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt had said Friday that Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy, and Kushner would travel to Islamabad on Saturday for “direct talks” with Iranian counterparts after Tehran sought an in-person conversation. Vice President JD Vance, who led an earlier U.S. delegation to Islamabad, was not expected to attend, though Leavitt said he would remain involved from Washington with Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the national security team.
By Sunday, Trump said he had called off the trip. “If they want to talk, they can come to us, or they can call us,” he told Fox News, adding that he was not sending envoys “to travel 18 hours to meet.” He said any agreement would have to ensure Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon.
Pakistan remains a diplomatic channel
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi returned to Islamabad on Sunday for talks focused on ending the war with the United States, Iranian state media reported. He had also visited Oman and was later in Russia for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, according to Iranian state-run reporting cited in the source material.
Araghchi said his regional travel was intended to coordinate with partners and consult on regional developments. His spokesperson, Esmaeil Baqaei, denied that a direct meeting with U.S. officials was planned during the Pakistan stop and said Iran’s observations would be conveyed to Pakistan.
A regional official involved in the mediation efforts told The Associated Press, on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter, that Pakistani mediators were trying to narrow significant gaps between Washington and Tehran. Those gaps have been visible for days: an earlier round of Islamabad talks ended without a deal, and a follow-up delegation was delayed after Iranian officials reportedly said they would not attend.
Hormuz and oil pressure shape the talks
The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the central pressure points. The narrow waterway normally carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil, but traffic has slowed sharply during the conflict. Trump has said the United States will not lift its blockade of Iranian ports until a deal is reached, while Iranian officials have described the blockade as a violation of the ceasefire.
Oil markets reacted to the stalled diplomacy. West Texas Intermediate was trading at $96.50 a barrel Sunday, up 2% from Friday’s close and 44% above its level before the war began, according to the captured CBS reporting. Brent crude was at $107.75, up about 3% from Friday and 48% since the start of the war.
Mike Wirth, chairman and CEO of Chevron, told “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that the global energy system had lost “an incredible amount of flexibility” since the war began. He said reopening the Strait of Hormuz would not immediately restore normal flows because supply chains and inventories would take time to recover.
A wider conflict complicates any deal
The diplomacy is also tied to the Israel-Hezbollah front in Lebanon. Trump announced that Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend a ceasefire by three weeks, but Hezbollah was not part of those negotiations and has opposed them. Israel and Hezbollah have since traded accusations of ceasefire violations, with both sides reporting new attacks.
Lebanon’s health ministry said 2,509 people have been killed and 7,755 wounded in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war, which began March 2 after Hezbollah fired rockets at northern Israel two days after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran. The ceasefire initially went into effect April 17 and was later extended.
For now, the path to renewed U.S.-Iran talks is uncertain. Pakistan remains an intermediary, Iran’s foreign minister is pressing his case in regional capitals, and Washington is signaling that any next step must meet Trump’s terms before U.S. envoys travel again.
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