American and Iranian diplomats hold talks with Pakistan's premier as discussions commence

A photograph released by Pakistan's Prime Minister Office on April 11, 2026, shows US Vice President JD Vance and Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif shaking hands during their meeting prior to the US-Iran peace talks in Islamabad, with the latter's office confirming that peace talks to end the Middle East war had commenced.

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Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with US Vice President JD Vance in Islamabad on April 11, marking the beginning of negotiations towards a deal to end the Middle East war, which was unleashed six weeks earlier by US-Israeli strikes on Tehran.

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Senior Iranian and American delegations met with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad on Saturday to initiate talks, with the Iranian delegation led by parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf meeting Sharif, followed by US Vice President JD Vance, accompanied by White House envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.

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According to Sharif's office, the Prime Minister expressed hope that the talks would serve as a stepping stone towards durable peace in the region, and reiterated that Pakistan looks forward to continuing its facilitation of both sides in making progress towards sustainable peace in the region.

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Iran has stated that any agreement on a permanent end to fighting must include the unfreezing of sanctioned Iranian assets, as well as an end to Israel's war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, which Vance has said will not be up for discussion in Islamabad.

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The warring parties still appeared to be far apart on key issues, including sanctions, Lebanon, and the opening of the strategic Strait of Hormuz, with mutual suspicion evident between the two sides.

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Ghalibaf stated that "our experience in negotiating with the Americans has always been met with failure and broken promises" shortly after landing in Pakistan, according to Iran's state broadcaster.

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Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his German counterpart in a call on Saturday that "Iran enters negotiations with complete distrust due to repeated breaches of commitments and betrayals by the United States", as reported by the Tasnim news agency.

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Vance said before leaving the US that if the other side was "willing to negotiate in good faith, we're certainly willing to extend the open hand", but warned that "if they're going to try to play us, then they're going to find the negotiating team is not that receptive".

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The ceasefire is already under strain, notably from Israel's continued strikes in Lebanon, which Iran and Pakistan insist is covered under the current truce, with Prime Minister Sharif stating that talks would not be easy.

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Sharif noted that "an even more difficult stage lies ahead", referring to efforts to permanently end fighting that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, sparking Iranian retaliation against Israel and across the Gulf, describing it as the "make or break" stage.

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On the US side, Trump has demanded the opening of the Strait of Hormuz as a condition for the two-week ceasefire, and vowed on Friday to have it open soon "with or without" Iran's cooperation, with his top priority being to ensure the Islamic republic had "no nuclear weapon, that's 99 percent of it".

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Security was tight in the Pakistani capital on Saturday, with a heavy police and paramilitary presence on the streets and road diversions around the "red zone" where government and diplomatic buildings are located.

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Pakistan has formulated a team of experts to facilitate the two sides in negotiations on navigation, nuclear, and other key matters, according to a diplomatic source familiar with the matter.

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The negotiations will be closely watched by other key regional players, with Egypt and Turkey having helped with mediation, along with China, all of which Pakistan was still coordinating closely with for the talks, the source said.

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In Tehran, a 30-year-old resident expressed skepticism that the negotiations would be successful, describing most of what Trump says as "pure noise and nonsense".