Masoud Pezeshkian Arrives In Pakistan As U.S. And Iran Negotiate War Ending Deal

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in Pakistan for talks with officials mediating negotiations between Tehran and Washington on a permanent end to the war, with the visit to Islamabad coming as technical teams worked on details after high-level negotiations in Switzerland Monday led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf.

In Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters that no visits were scheduled for the U.N. watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency to examine Iranian nuclear sites bombed by the United States last year, even as Vance previously said the negotiations in Switzerland won an agreement for the inspectors to visit the sites.

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The talks also included a “de-confliction cell” to address fighting in Lebanon between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, and the U.S. said negotiators discussed “mechanisms” to ensure that the Strait of Hormuz remains open.

Pezeshkian cautioned that “the effectiveness of the talks depends on full commitment to the agreed obligations and their precise implementation,” while the reports of renewed violence in Lebanon came after two days of calm following a ceasefire brokered on Saturday.

The Global News report said Pakistani state media received Pezeshkian in Islamabad with President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other senior officials, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi joining the delegation.

A U.S.-Iran dispute over nuclear inspections clouded work to finalize a war-ending deal as officials mediated talks on a permanent end to their war and violence broke out again in Lebanon.

In Tehran, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters that U.N. inspectors were not scheduled to examine the nuclear sites bombed by the U.S. last year, refuting comments made a day before by U.S. Vice President JD Vance.

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In response, President Donald Trump posted on social media that Iran had agreed to nuclear inspections long into the future, saying that without this concession "there would be no further negotiations!"

The NPR report also said the International Maritime Organization announced Tuesday that a plan is underway to evacuate 11,000 stranded seafarers through the strait, while Iran said it closed the strait again over fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

NPR added that Kpler confirmed 39 ships crossed through the strait Monday, after about 92 crossings between Friday and Sunday, and that the U.S. said negotiators discussed “mechanisms” to ensure the Strait of Hormuz remains open.

Mediators Qatar and Pakistan said the first round of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran ended with “encouraging progress,” with a joint statement saying the parties agreed to a “roadmap towards reaching a final deal within 60 days.”

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The BBC reported that Iran’s foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said there had been “major progress” towards ending the conflict in Lebanon, and that Araghchi said the first “real test” would be the Lebanon de-confliction cell.

The BBC also said a “communication line” had been formed “to avoid incidents and miscommunication with the aim of safe passage for commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz,” as Israeli air strikes and Hezbollah attacks continued to be reported in Lebanon.

In parallel, the Global News report said any renewal of heavy fighting could threaten the broader diplomatic talks, since Iran has demanded that a full truce in Lebanon be part of any comprehensive deal.

Global News further reported that Iran’s president makes his first visit to Islamabad since the war started with the U.S. and Israeli attack on Iran on Feb. 28, and that Pezeshkian and Sharif were to hold a joint news conference after their discussions.