Trump Steps Back from Indirect Talks with Iran

President Donald Trump has decided against sending U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, along with his son-in-law Jared Kushner, to Pakistan for discussions with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

On Saturday, it was reported that the president expressed his concerns about further in-person meetings, citing the extensive time and resources required for travel between the U.S. and the Middle East.

“I’ve told my people a little while ago — they were getting ready to leave, and I said, ‘Nope, you’re not making an 18-hour flight to go there. We have all the cards. They can call us anytime they want, but you’re not going to be making any more 18-hour flights to sit around talking about nothing’,” Trump stated.

It seems Araghchi has already departed from Islamabad after his discussions with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Esmaeil Baqaei, the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, mentioned in a social media post that the foreign minister met with senior Pakistani officials to address what he termed “ending American imposed wars of aggression.”

“No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the U.S.,” he wrote. “Iran’s observations would be conveyed to Pakistan.”

In an earlier announcement, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt had confirmed that a meeting was scheduled for Friday. This would have marked the first in-person discussion since the president declared a two-week ceasefire extension earlier in the week.

This is a breaking story. Check back for updates.