Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said on Friday that an Iranian delegation led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had arrived in Islamabad.
He said Araghchi was received by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and other senior officials.
“During the visit, the Iranian foreign minister will hold meetings with Pakistan’s senior leadership to discuss the latest regional developments as well as ongoing efforts for regional peace and stability,” he added.
Earlier, Pakistani sources said a small negotiating team was expected to accompany the foreign minister.
They said a second round of peace talks with the United States was also expected and that a logistics and security team from the US was already in the federal capital.
However, Iran’s state media, while confirming the visit, said that Araghchi would hold “bilateral consultations”.
“Iran’s foreign minister will begin a regional tour on Friday evening, April 24, travelling to Islamabad, Muscat and Moscow,” the official IRNA news agency said.
“The purpose of this trip is to hold bilateral consultations, discuss ongoing developments in the region, and review the latest situation regarding the war imposed by the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran,” it said.
Before his arrival, Araghchi himself said in a post on the social media platform X that he was embarking on a “timely tour” of Islamabad, Muscat, and Moscow.
“The purpose of my visits is to closely coordinate with our partners on bilateral matters and consult on regional developments. Our neighbours are our priority,” he said.
Araghchi reached Islamabad shortly after White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that US Special Envoy on the Middle East Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s adviser Jared Kushner would be leaving for Pakistan on Saturday for a second round of talks with Iran.
“I confirm special envoy Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be off to Pakistan again tomorrow morning to engage in talks – direct talks – intermediated by the Pakistanis, who have been incredible friends and mediators throughout this entire process, with representatives from the Iranian delegation,” she told Fox News.
“Everyone will be on standby to fly to Pakistan if necessary, but first, Steve and Jared will be going over there to report back to the president, the vice president and the rest of the team,” Leavitt said.
“The president, the vice president, the secretary of state, will be waiting here in the United States for updates, and the vice president, I understand, is on standby and will be willing to dispatch to Pakistan if we feel it’s a necessary use of his time,” she said.
“The Iranians reached out, as the president called on them to do, and asked for this in-person conversation,” she claimed.
“The president always wants to give diplomacy a chance. It’s always his first option, and he’s willing to do that here again,” Leavitt said.
She added that the US had seen some progress from the Iranian side in recent days and hoped more would be made in weekend talks.
The development came hours after Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Araghchi, in a phone call, exchanged views on the US-Iran ceasefire and Pakistan’s ongoing diplomatic efforts, according to the Foreign Office (FO).
In a post on X, FO said, “Both sides exchanged views on regional developments, the ceasefire, and ongoing diplomatic efforts being pursued by Islamabad in the context of US-Iran engagement”.
It added that Dar, for his part, stressed the importance of “sustained dialogue and engagement to address outstanding issues, in order to advance regional peace and stability at the earliest”.
While his Iranian counterpart lauded “Pakistan’s consistent and constructive facilitation role in this regard”.
The FO added that the two leaders agreed to remain in “close contact”.
On Thursday, US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he would not use a nuclear weapon in the war against Iran. “Why would I use a nuclear weapon? We’ve totally, in a very conventional way, decimated them without it,” Trump told reporters at the White House when asked whether he would use such a weapon.
“No, I wouldn’t use it. A nuclear weapon should never be allowed to be used by anybody,” he said. “There’s nothing worse than a nuclear weapon that takes out cities, destroys the Middle East, or creates a nuclear holocaust in Europe,” he added.
Asked how long he was willing to wait for a long-term peace deal with Iran, Trump said, “Don’t rush me.” He said Iran might have loaded up their weaponry “a little bit” during the two-week ceasefire, but added that the US military could knock that out in about one day.
“Their navy is gone. Their air force is gone, their anti-aircraft is gone …maybe they loaded up a little bit during the two-week hiatus, but we’ll knock that out about one day, if they did,” he said.
“I want to make the best deal. I could make a deal right now … but I don’t want to do that. I want to have it everlasting,” Trump added. “I want a great deal where our nation and the world is safe from lunatics with nuclear weapons.”
The first round of historic direct US-Iran talks was held in Islamabad on April 11 and 12, following a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire on April 8. It had ended without an agreement, but also without a breakdown.
However, the expected second round of negotiations witnessed a delay due to continued friction between the US and Iran, particularly regarding Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the US blockade of Iran’s ports.
Over the past few days, Pakistan has ramped up its diplomatic efforts to bring the US and Iran back to the negotiation table.