{"id":85013,"date":"2026-04-21T13:40:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T13:40:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/2026\/04\/21\/as-ceasefire-nears-end-pakistan-is-racing-against-time-to-bring-iran-back-into-us-talks-us-israel-war-over-iran-news-2\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T13:41:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T13:41:15","slug":"as-ceasefire-nears-end-pakistan-is-racing-against-time-to-bring-iran-back-into-us-talks-us-israel-war-over-iran-news-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/2026\/04\/21\/as-ceasefire-nears-end-pakistan-is-racing-against-time-to-bring-iran-back-into-us-talks-us-israel-war-over-iran-news-2\/","title":{"rendered":"As ceasefire nears end, Pakistan is racing against time to bring Iran back into US talks. US-Israel war over Iran news"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Islamabad, Pakistan –<\/strong> As United States Vice President JD Vance prepares to fly to Islamabad, Pakistan is racing against time and odds in trying to convince Tehran to join talks with the US aimed at ending their war, now in its eighth week.<\/p>\n

But Pakistani officials involved in the mediation efforts are hopeful that Iran could send a negotiating team to the talks by Wednesday, but a series of steps taken by the US in the last 48 hours had cast a dose of doubt on Islamabad’s peace efforts by Tuesday evening.<\/p>\n

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Recommended Stories <\/h2>\n

4 item list<\/span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n

Iran is publicly insisting it has no plans to return to the negotiating table, while Pakistan and other mediators in the Middle East are working behind the scenes to get Tehran back in the room before a two-week ceasefire expires on Wednesday evening US time.<\/p>\n

At least nine US planes have landed in Pakistan over the past three days, carrying personnel and equipment to be used by the Vance-led negotiating team.<\/p>\n

Vance is expected to depart the US on Tuesday evening Pakistan time \u2013 morning in the US \u2013 and arrive in Islamabad late Wednesday morning. Vance is expected to be joined by US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner. The three officials led the US delegation during the first round of direct talks with Iran in Islamabad on April 11.<\/p>\n

But it is not clear whom they are coming to meet.<\/p>\n

Earlier on Tuesday, Iran’s Ambassador to Pakistan Reza Amiri Moghadam Posted<\/a> On social media, paraphrasing Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, that it was a “universally accepted truth” that “not a single country in possession of a major civilization will negotiate under threat and force”, calling it “an important, Islamic and religious principle”.<\/p>\n

Iran’s Foreign Ministry also said it had no plans to re-engage diplomatically with Washington. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker and head of its negotiating team, was more direct. In a post on X early Tuesday, he accused Trump of trying to turn the negotiating table “into a table of surrender or justification for renewed war.”<\/p>\n

Ghalibaf said, \u201cWe do not accept talks under the shadow of threats.\u201d wrote<\/a>Adding that Iran had “made preparations to reveal new cards on the battlefield” over the past two weeks.<\/p>\n

Iran’s judiciary chief, Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje, said separately that Tehran should “maintain 100% readiness” given the “strong possibility” of further US attacks.<\/p>\n

increasing tension in the sea<\/h2>\n

These public statements follow the latest confrontation between the two rivals, who have been at war since the US-Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28.<\/p>\n

On Sunday, US naval forces fired on and boarded the Iranian-flagged cargo ship Tausca in the Gulf of Oman as it attempted to pass the naval blockade that the US has imposed since April 13 against Iran-linked ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran described the incident as a ceasefire violation and demanded the immediate release of the ship, its crew members and their families.<\/p>\n

Iran’s Foreign Ministry described the seizure as “extremely dangerous” and “criminal”, warning that Tehran would “use all its capabilities” to protect its national interests.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, the US announced that its forces had also boarded a second ship, this time in the Asia Pacific region. The ship, cargo ship M\/T Tifani, was already under US sanctions for carrying Iranian oil.<\/p>\n

For researcher Javad Heran-Nia, an expert on Iranian affairs, the Tosca incident may nevertheless provide a narrow opening.<\/p>\n

“The release of the ship’s crew could be a green light for Iran to soften its position on returning to negotiations,” he told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

Omar Karim, associate fellow at the Riyadh-based King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, said the key signal Iran was seeking was an end to the US blockade, or at least a clear intention to relax it.<\/p>\n

He pointed to Iran’s conduct during the first round. Tehran initially conditioned its participation on a ceasefire in Lebanon, before entering talks without a deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis shows they are pragmatic,\u201d Karim told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

In this screengrab from a video released April 19, 2026, the USS Spruance is seen intercepting the Iranian-flagged cargo ship M\/V Touska in the northern Arabian Sea (Handout\/Centcom via Reuters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mohammad Khatibi, a Tehran-based political analyst, said Iran’s position has been the same everywhere, because Iran believes that unless it can export its oil, it will not allow others in the region to do the same.<\/p>\n

There is no need to publicly announce any substantive easing of the blockade, he said, as it could take the form of reciprocal steps, “such as the US allowing a number of Iranian oil shipments to proceed, with Tehran responding in kind”.<\/p>\n

\u201cIran does not want to be involved in a renewed conflict,\u201d he told Al Jazeera. “But from Tehran’s perspective, this is a fight for survival, and it is prepared to fight with all available means to the end.”<\/p>\n

IRGC factor<\/h2>\n

Analysts said Tehran’s statements also reflect the domestic political dynamics underpinning Iran’s public position.<\/p>\n

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is pressuring Iran’s negotiating team to adopt a stronger line, he said, making a return to talks conditional on a complete end to the US naval blockade.<\/p>\n

Heran-Niya said the division between the IRGC and the diplomatic team was clear. He cited instances over the weekend when ships attempting to pass through the strait were reportedly fired upon by Iran. India summoned Iran’s ambassador to New Delhi to express concern over the firing on two of its ships.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe attack on the tankers during the ceasefire demonstrates the IRGC’s dominance over the diplomatic team and its disregard for their situation,\u201d he told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

Yet Heran-Niya said that if an agreement was reached, it would likely overcome internal opposition.<\/p>\n

“If an agreement is reached, it will likely be sovereign in nature,” he said. \u201cThe establishment will impose its own narrative, and the IRGC will accept it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Who is Pakistan working with?<\/h2>\n

Trump has set public red lines. They have demanded that Iran stop uranium enrichment and return its existing stockpile of enriched uranium. He has said that America will not lift the blockade of Hormuz until Tehran agrees to talks.<\/p>\n

“They’re going to negotiate, and if they don’t, they’re going to see problems like they’ve never seen before,” he said in an interview Monday.<\/p>\n

The enrichment question remains the central fault line. During the first round of talks, US negotiators proposed a 20-year freeze on Iranian enrichment. Iran resisted for five years. Trump has publicly stated that he does not want any enrichment and has refused to set a time frame for the freeze.<\/p>\n

Karim said, the Strait of Hormuz is not just a bargaining chip for Iran.<\/p>\n

Tehran wants to get the most out of that leverage before any deal is concluded, he said, because once a deal is struck, “those cards can no longer be played”.<\/p>\n

\u201cIran understands that it still has leverage,\u201d Karim said, \u201cand it needs to be used to the maximum level in any negotiations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Herran-Niya said Washington’s position on Hormuz was equally strong.<\/p>\n

“The US wants to remove the Strait of Hormuz card from Iran’s hands,” he said. “On the other hand, Iran wants to preserve it not only as a negotiating card but also as a strategic asset.”<\/p>\n

Trump’s messaging problem<\/h2>\n

Trump’s public messaging during the talks is complicating Pakistan’s efforts.<\/p>\n

\"President
President Donald Trump at the White House, April 18, 2026 (Julia Demari Nickinson\/AP Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

His posts on Truth Social and comments to journalists in which he claimed Iran had agreed to provisions that sources said had not been finalized, including the handing over of enriched uranium, showed tensions in diplomatic efforts during the first round.<\/p>\n

Iranian officials publicly rejected the claims, while US media reported that some Trump administration officials privately acknowledged that his comments were damaging, given Tehran’s deep distrust of Washington.<\/p>\n

However, Karim said Trump’s message was “more a form of posturing than a structural obstacle to negotiations”.<\/p>\n

How Islamabad structures the process will be important, no matter the outcome, Heran-Niya said.<\/p>\n

“Pakistan is the only actor that has military and security ties with both Washington and Tehran,” he said. He said its role would be “extremely important” in shaping the narrative around any agreement, allowing both sides to claim success.<\/p>\n

what comes next<\/h2>\n

The second round of talks, if held, is expected to begin on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Trump extended the original deadline by 24 hours, saying the ceasefire now expires “Wednesday evening Washington time”, which would be Thursday morning in Islamabad, and described further extension as “highly unlikely”. It was initially scheduled to end Tuesday evening in the US or Wednesday morning in the Middle East.<\/p>\n

Whether an Iranian delegation participates remains the central question.<\/p>\n

State broadcaster Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting said on Tuesday that no Iranian diplomatic delegation, “be it a primary or secondary team, or an initial or follow-up mission” had traveled to Islamabad.<\/p>\n

However, an Iranian source said there were strong indications that a delegation would still visit Pakistan, adding that security considerations would remain at the heart of any decision.<\/p>\n

Heran-Niya said that failure to hold the planned talks would have serious consequences.<\/p>\n

He said, “The alternative, a return to war, although unable to establish a permanent balance, promises catastrophic destruction.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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