The White House announced Friday that President Donald Trump is deploying envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan for a second round of ceasefire discussions with Iran.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has already reached Pakistan’s capital city of Islamabad, where he held overnight discussions with Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and the country’s Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to officials.
Pakistani authorities are making preparations to host Witkoff and Kushner for the continuation of diplomatic talks, though no specific arrival date has been announced for the American representatives. The White House confirmed that Vice President JD Vance will not be participating in these discussions.
Simultaneously, the Trump administration revealed new economic penalties targeting a significant Chinese oil refinery along with approximately 40 shipping firms and vessels that transport Iranian petroleum. This action appears connected to the administration’s strategy of implementing secondary sanctions against organizations conducting business with Iran to eliminate the country’s oil export revenues.
Araghchi has additional meetings scheduled for Saturday with Pakistani leadership. Early Saturday photographs from Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry depicted the Iranian minister in discussions with Dar, Munir, and Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
According to Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry, the Iranian diplomatic team will engage in conversations with high-ranking Pakistani officials regarding current regional developments and initiatives to advance peace and stability in the area.
This diplomatic mission coincides with Pakistan’s preparations to welcome the American envoys, though the exact timing of Witkoff and Kushner’s arrival in Islamabad remains unspecified.
Late Friday evening, the foreign ministers of Egypt and Pakistan conducted a phone conversation about launching fresh negotiations between the United States and Iran. Egypt’s Badr Abdelatty spoke with his Pakistani colleague Mohammad Ishaq Dar.
Egypt’s foreign ministry reported that both diplomats emphasized their belief that diplomatic negotiations represent the most effective approach to ending the current conflict.
