Components of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Aircraft Carrier Strike Group (IKECSG), the guided missile destroyer USS Stethem (DDG 63) and the French Navy frigate FS Languedoc (D 653) transit the Strait of Hormuz on November 25, 2023. PHOTO: REUTERS
ISLAMABAD:
What were billed as the most consequential talks in decades ended without a breakthrough, but also without a collapse, as nearly 24-hour negotiations between the United States and Iran concluded in Islamabad on Sunday, with both sides delving into core demands but leaving the door open for further compromise.
US Vice President JD Vance, who led the US delegation, was the first to leave after the marathon talks and announced that there was no agreement before leaving the capital.
“The bad news is that we have not reached an agreement, and I think it is much worse for Iran than for the United States of America,” Vance told reporters shortly before leaving, in what marked the highest-level direct contact between Washington and Tehran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Despite the blunt assessment, Pakistan attempted to frame the result as a pause rather than a failure. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the talks were “not dead” and described the situation as a “stalemate” while expressing hope that diplomacy would eventually prevail.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who played a central mediation role alongside military leaders, insisted that Islamabad would continue to facilitate dialogue “in the coming days.”
The talks, which began on Saturday afternoon, were initially held indirectly before moving to a rare face-to-face meeting. Negotiations continued well into the night and into Sunday morning, underscoring both the complexity of the issues and the seriousness of the effort.
When Vance addressed reporters at an Islamabad hotel, the sun had already risen, marking the end of an intense diplomatic campaign in which “numerous messages and texts” were exchanged between the two sides. According to officials, the discussions covered a wide range of contentious issues, including Iran’s nuclear program, the future of the Strait of Hormuz, sanctions relief, war reparations and a broader ceasefire framework following the recent six-week US-Israel conflict with Iran.
Vance made clear that Washington’s core demand remained unchanged: an unequivocal commitment by Iran not to pursue the ability to develop nuclear weapons.
“We need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not pursue a nuclear weapon and they will not pursue the tools that would allow them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” he said. He added that Tehran “had not agreed to our terms,” indicating that fundamental gaps remain.
Iranian officials, while acknowledging the absence of a deal, adopted a more measured tone. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said expectations of a quick deal were unrealistic given the depth of the disputes.
“From the beginning, we should not have expected to reach an agreement in a single session,” he said, emphasizing that diplomacy would continue.
Baghaei stressed that the negotiations were part of a broader strategic effort and described diplomacy as a continuation of Iran’s struggle to safeguard its national interests. He also reiterated his deep distrust of the United States, citing “breach of trust” in the past and recent conflicts.
Iran’s delegation, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said it had put forward “forward-looking” proposals but suggested Washington had yet to demonstrate the will needed to close the gap. “The United States has understood Iran’s logic and principles, and it is time for them to decide whether they can earn our trust or not,” Ghalibaf said in a statement.
For Pakistan, hosting the talks was both a diplomatic gamble and an opportunity to reassert its relevance on the world stage. In a televised statement at the conclusion of the talks, Dar thanked both sides for heeding Islamabad’s call for a ceasefire and agreeing to negotiations.
He revealed that he, along with Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, facilitated “several rounds of intense and constructive negotiations” over the past 24 hours.
Dar stressed the importance of maintaining the ceasefire and expressed hope that the “positive spirit” demonstrated in Islamabad would eventually translate into lasting peace. “Pakistan has played and will continue to play its role in facilitating engagement and dialogue,” he said.
Officials privately acknowledged that while no agreement was reached, simply bringing the two adversaries together and keeping them engaged for almost a full day was in itself a significant achievement.
With a still-deep trust deficit and entrenched positions, the Islamabad talks may not have achieved the “deal of the century” that some hoped for. However, they appear to have laid the foundation for a longer and more gradual process.
Some observers said that, for now, the outcome can best be described as no breakthrough, but no collapse, and that momentum is enough to keep hope alive.
