While speaking with reporters on Saturday, President Donald Trump hinted at a potential breakthrough in the ongoing peace talks with Iran. The update came just hours after Trump announced that a second round of planned talks between the two sides in Islamabad, Pakistan had been cancelled.
Earlier in the day, Trump announced he had canceled a scheduled trip by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and senior advisor Jared Kushner to Pakistan’s capital city. The cancellation occurred on the same day the meeting was to take place, following the departure of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi from Pakistan without direct engagement with the U.S. side.
“I just cancelled the trip of my representatives going is Islamabad, Pakistan, to meet with the Iranians. Too much time wasted on traveling, too much work! Besides which, there is tremendous infighting and confusion within their ‘leadership.’ Nobody knows who is in charge, including them,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Also, we have all the cards, they have none! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!”
Trump later elaborated to Fox News that the long-distance travel was unnecessary given the U.S. position and suggested that future discussions, if any, could occur by phone.
The planned meeting in Islamabad had been arranged as part of Pakistan-mediated efforts to extend and stabilize a fragile ceasefire that took effect earlier this month amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran.
Pakistan had hosted an initial round of talks and, at its request, the United States extended the ceasefire to allow time for Iran to prepare a unified proposal addressing key issues, including its nuclear program and regional security concerns. U.S. officials, including Vice President JD Vance in earlier planning stages, had been involved in the first round of talks.
The second round was intended to build on those foundations through indirect channels, with Pakistani officials serving as intermediaries between the U.S. delegation and Iranian representatives.
While speaking with reporters after the cancellation, Trump stated that the Iranian negotiators responded with what he described as a “better deal.”
“They gave us a paper that should have been better. And interestingly, immediately when i canceled it, within 10 minutes, we got a new paper that was much better. They offered a lot, but not enough,” Trump said.
“We talked about they will not have a nuclear weapon, very simple. I’ll deal with whoever runs the show, but there’s no reason to wait 2twodays, have people traveling for 16, 17 hours,” the president continued. “When they want, they can call me, we have all the cards. That whole deal is not complicated; Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
Prior to the cancellation, Pakistani government sources had expressed optimism regarding potential progress. Two senior Pakistani officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Anadolu Agency earlier this week that Islamabad was actively working toward a “breakthrough” on Iran’s nuclear program issue in the days ahead.
They described ongoing efforts to facilitate “maximum understanding” between Washington and Tehran, with a focus on bridging differences before any new round of talks in the Pakistani capital.
The U.S. side has emphasized its leverage in any future negotiations, while Iranian statements have consistently ruled out direct talks under certain conditions. As of this report, no immediate rescheduling of in-person meetings has been announced, though the door remains open for communication through alternative channels.
