US Vice President JD Vance will travel to Pakistan to lead the next round of negotiations with Iran, a White House official told Axios, putting to rest earlier confusion following contradictory statements from Donald Trump.
The US delegation is also expected to include special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, both of whom were present during the previous round of talks held in Islamabad on April 11-12.
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Earlier, Trump had indicated that Vance would skip the visit due to last-minute security constraints flagged by the Secret Service. However, reports from multiple outlets, including ABC News and Axios, along with comments from US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, suggested that the vice president would, in fact, lead the delegation.
The upcoming talks are slated for Tuesday and could spill over into Wednesday, Trump said, noting that the earlier round - also led by Vance - ended without a deal.
In the run-up to the discussions, Trump intensified his rhetoric against Tehran, accusing it of a “total violation” of a two-week ceasefire with alleged attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. Writing on Truth Social, he said the US had offered Iran a “reasonable deal” but warned of strong consequences if it is rejected.
“The United States is going to knock out every single power plant, and every single bridge, in Iran. No more Mr. Nice Guy!” Trump said, adding that failure to accept the proposal would prompt decisive action.
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Separately, Washington's envoy to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, described the upcoming engagement as “incredibly consequential,” signalling the high stakes attached to the negotiations.
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