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As many as nine American military cargo planes have arrived in Islamabad carrying equipment to support an anticipated visit by US Vice President JD Vance for a second round of peace talks with Iran, a Pakistani official told The National – but uncertainty remains as to whether negotiations will go ahead.
“We are still so unsure [the peace talks will happen],” said the official. “The Deputy Prime Minister [Ishaq Dar, who is also Foreign Minister] and Field Marshal [Asif Munir, Pakistan’s Army Chief of Staff, who has led Pakistan’s mediation efforts] are constantly in talks.”
Mr Vance led the US delegation during the first round of marathon negotiations on April 11-12, alongside special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law. Those talks ended without agreement after 21 hours, foundering on the status of Iran’s nuclear programme, the Strait of Hormuz and sanctions relief.
Speaking to reporters at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum last week, Mr Dar struck a more optimistic tone, saying “more than 80 per cent of the work has been done” and that only “a couple of things” remained, with both sides needing to “show flexibility”.
The hesitation appears to come largely from Tehran. Since the assassination of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli strikes in February and the appointment of his son Mojtaba as successor, there have been signs that a power struggle between Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the country’s civilian leadership has complicated decision-making.
The split was laid bare last week when Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared the Strait of Hormuz open to shipping, only for the IRGC to reimpose “strict military control” hours later and fire on an Indian oil tanker.
Mr Trump yesterday said Mr Vance had already departed for Islamabad, but a source told Reuters he was still in Washington. Axios later reported that Mr Vance would arrive on Tuesday. Adding to the uncertainty, Iran has not yet confirmed its participation in the talks aimed at extending a truce that is set to expire on Wednesday evening.
In Islamabad, the uncertainty is palpable and disruptive.
Much of the Pakistani capital has been sealed off by roadblocks, officially in place until April 24, although if talks are delayed, they could last longer. One resident living in an eastern area of Islamabad says she cannot travel to work or meetings in the western half of the city because the secure zone cuts through the main thoroughfares.
“Everything has become difficult,” a delivery driver told The National, blaming the barriers for lengthening journey times and rising fuel costs resulting from the Iran war making them more expensive.
“We are all waiting for this to end.”
