US-Iran talks set to bring together Vance and Iranian officials in Pakistan as ceasefire strains

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A U.S. delegation led by Vice President JD Vance arrived in Pakistan on Saturday for high-level talks with Iranian representatives, the first such meeting since the war began more than a month ago that will test whether they can shore up a fragile ceasefire and pave the way for peace.

The ceasefire brokered by Pakistan still faces hurdles in the talks beginning Saturday, as Israel and Hezbollah militants have traded fire along the border of southern Lebanon and Iran has set conditions before negotiations can begin.

The Iranian delegation arrived early Saturday in Pakistan's capital Islamabad, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, who said on X that discussions will only take place if there is an Israeli ceasefire in Lebanon and the release of blocked Iranian assets.

U.S. President Donald Trump has posted repeatedly about the negotiations on social media, saying Iranian officials "have no cards.” He accused them of using the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for global energy supplies, for extortion.

Trump wrote, “The only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!”

The normally bustling streets of Islamabad were deserted Saturday morning as security forces sealed roads ahead of the talks. Pakistani authorities urged residents to stay inside, leading the city to look like it was under curfew.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Friday that the conflict was entering a “difficult phase” as the sides try to shift from a temporary pause in fighting to a more lasting settlement, adding that they were at a “make-or-break” moment.

Vance is leading a negotiation with Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. Before his departure from Washington on Friday, Vance said he believed the negotiations with Iran will be “positive.”

But he added, “If they’re going to try and play us, then they’re going to find that the negotiating team is not that receptive.”

Negotiations between Israel and Lebanon are expected to begin Tuesday in the U.S. capital, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun’s office said Friday. Beirut is keen to hold direct talks to end the war between Israel and Hezbollah, but under a ceasefire similar to the one with Iran.

Israel wants the Lebanese government to assume responsibility for disarming Hezbollah, much like was envisaged in a November 2024 ceasefire. But it is unclear whether Lebanon's army can establish a monopoly on arms or confiscate weapons from the militant group, which has resisted efforts to curb its strength for decades.

Israel’s insistence that the ceasefire in Iran does not include a pause in its fighting with Hezbollah has threatened to sink the deal. The militant group joined the war in support of its backer, Iran.

The day the truce was announced, Israel pounded Beirut with airstrikes, killing more than 300 people, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. It was the deadliest day in the country since the war began Feb. 28.

Trump said Thursday he had asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to dial back the strikes.

Then on Friday, Israeli warplanes struck near a state security office in the southern town of Nabatieh, killing 13 officers, according to the Lebanese president’s office. Israeli forces said they also hit about 10 rocket launchers in Lebanon that had fired toward northern Israel.

Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz has sent oil prices skyrocketing, driven stocks down and roiled the world economy. Tehran’s control over the waterway has proved its biggest strategic advantage in the war.

The spot price of Brent crude, the international standard, was around $97 Friday, up more than 30% since the war started.

Before the conflict, around a fifth of the world’s traded oil typically passed through the strait on more than 100 ships, many carrying oil to Asia. With the ceasefire in place, only 12 have been recorded passing through.

Metz reported from Jerusalem and Castillo reported from Beijing.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance, center, walks with Pakistan's Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshall Asim Munir, left, and Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar after arriving for talks with Iranian officials in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

Displaced families extend their hands while waiting for donated food beside the tents they use as shelters after fleeing Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

A Lebanese civil defense worker, right, stands with a resident at the site of a building destroyed in an Israeli airstrike a day earlier in central Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Police officers take position in Islamabad, Pakistan, to ensure security ahead of possible negotiations between Iran and the United States, Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Vice President JD Vance walks to speak with the Press before boarding Air Force Two, Friday, April 10, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md., for expected departure to Pakistan, for talks on Iran. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, pool)

A police officer walks past a billboard regarding the United States and Iran negotiations, outside a media facilitation center in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

A U.S. delegation led by Vice President JD Vance arrived in Pakistan for talks with Iranian officials aimed at shoring up a shaky ceasefire and paving the way for a permanent end to the fighting. It marks the first such meeting since the war began more than a month ago.

The ceasefire brokered by Pakistan still faces hurdles in the talks beginning Saturday, as Israel and Hezbollah militants have been trading fire along the border of southern Lebanon and Iran has set conditions before negotiations can begin.

The Iranian delegation arrived early Saturday in Islamabad, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, who said on X that discussions will only take place if there is an Israeli ceasefire in Lebanon the release of blocked Iranian assets.

Hours earlier, President Donald Trump wished Vance good luck. “We’ll find out what’s going on. They’re militarily defeated.”

In Islamabad, the streets of a normally bustling capital were deserted Saturday as security forces sealed roads ahead of the talks.

Here is the latest:

Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Saturday received the U.S. delegation lead by U.S. Vice President JD Vance.

The ministry said in a statement that Dar commended the U.S. commitment to achieving lasting regional and global peace and stability.

He expressed hope that the parties would engage constructively and reiterated Pakistan’s desire to continue facilitating efforts toward a lasting and durable resolution to the conflict.

The Lebanese National News Agency reported multiple Israeli strikes early Saturday in southern Lebanon, killing at least three people.

The three were killed when an airstrike hit and destroyed a residential building in Maifadoun town in the southern province of Nabatiyeh, according to the agency.

Hezbollah, meanwhile, said it fired a barrage of rockets that targeted a military facility in northern Israel.

Vance arrived in Islamabad at the head of a delegation that includes President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner.

The Iranian delegation, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, was already in Islamabad.

Before departing for Pakistan, Vance warned Iran not to “play” the U.S. Hours later, Qalibaf said discussions would only take place if there is an Israeli ceasefire in Lebanon and the release of blocked Iranian assets.

The Iranian delegation is scheduled to meet with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at noon Saturday, according to the Tasnim news agency, which is close to the powerful Revolutionary Guard.

Iran’s negotiating team, chaired by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and includes Foreign Minister Abbas Arghchi, met late Friday with Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir.

The meetings come ahead of high-stakes talks between Iran and the U.S. in Islamabad which aim at reaching a permanent end of the war in the Middle East.

Pakistan’s government has set up a state-of-the-art media center to facilitate Pakistani and foreign journalists covering the talks between the United States and Iran, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said.

Tarar told reporters the facility at the Jinnah Convention Center offers high-speed internet and a range of free services to support media coverage. Shuttle services have been arranged to transport journalists between the media center and a hotel in the city’s main shopping mall.

Pakistan has announced visa-on-arrival for journalists and official delegations traveling from the United States and Iran for the talks, which have been dubbed the “Islamabad talks.”

Inside the media center, rows of workstations equipped with laptops and charging points allow reporters to file stories. Large screens broadcast major domestic and international television channels. The facility also has designated areas for live stand-ups, press briefings and interviews.

The streets of Pakistan’s normally bustling capital were deserted Saturday as security forces sealed roads ahead of talks between high-level officials from Iran and the U.S. to end their nearly six-week war. Pakistani authorities urged Islamabad residents to stay inside, leading the city to look like it was under curfew.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance is leading the American delegation, which was expected to arrive before noon.

Iranian negotiators, headed by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, arrived late Friday.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif the conflict was entering a “difficult phase” as the sides try to shift from a temporary pause in fighting to a more lasting settlement. He said they were at a “make-or-break” moment.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance disembarks from Air Force Two after arriving for talks with Iranian officials in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

People residing in an underground shelter pack up their belongings as they prepare to leave after the announcement of a two-week ceasefire agreement between Iran and the US, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Men inspect the damage to their home destroyed in an Israeli airstrike a day earlier in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

A Lebanese civil defense worker looks upward near the site of a building destroyed in an Israeli airstrike a day earlier in central Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Displaced families extend their hands while waiting for donated food beside the tents they use as shelters after fleeing Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon, in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

A Lebanese civil defense worker, right, stands with a resident at the site of a building destroyed in an Israeli airstrike a day earlier in central Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)