After 21 hours, the Iranian side decided not to accept the US conditions, Vance said.Image: keystone
April 12, 2026, 5:35 a.mApril 12, 2026, 05:41
The direct negotiations between the USA and Iran, mediated by Pakistan, ended early Sunday morning without any tangible result. According to US Vice President JD Vance, no agreement was reached at the talks in the Pakistani capital Islamabad. It was initially not known whether and when further negotiations would take place.
They are now leaving the site of the negotiations, leaving behind a proposal for Iran that represents a final offer, said Vance. According to journalists present, the US vice president boarded a plane bound for the USA that morning. Tehran is not planning another round of negotiations, the Iranian Fars news agency reported, citing a source familiar with the negotiations.
After 21 hours of negotiations, the Iranian side decided not to accept the US terms, Vance said. The USA had made it clear where the red lines were and on which points it was prepared to accommodate Iran. The US vice president did not say in detail what exactly the sticking points were. He simply said that it has not yet been seen that Iran is fundamentally committed not to developing nuclear weapons in the long term. “We hope we’ll see it again.” Vance said he was in constant contact with US President Donald Trump during the negotiations.
Iran: Success of the diplomatic process depends on the opposing side
According to Iranian Foreign Office spokesman Ismail Baghai, the negotiations covered key issues such as the Strait of Hormuz, the nuclear issue, war reparations, the lifting of sanctions and an end to the war in the region. “Intense negotiations” took place until Sunday. “Numerous messages and texts” were exchanged between the two sides, Baghai wrote on X in the early morning hours shortly before Vance’s press conference.
The success of the diplomatic process depends “on the seriousness and good will of the other side to refrain from excessive and inadmissible demands and to recognize Iran’s legitimate rights and interests,” Baghai continued
Iranian media: Big differences in negotiations
Iranian media had previously reported major differences in negotiations with the USA. The news agencies Tasnim and Fars spoke of “excessive demands” from the US side. Specifically, the Strait of Hormuz was named as a central point of contention. From the Iranian point of view, this hindered the progress of the negotiations.
According to Tasnim, the Iranian delegation insisted on “preserving military achievements,” a possible reference to the Islamic Republic’s missile program. However, according to both reports, the biggest dispute was over questions about the Strait of Hormuz.
The strait connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean and thus the region’s major oil producing countries with world markets. Iran has seized control of the sea route since the start of the war. US President Trump made their opening a condition for the two-week ceasefire announced last Wednesday.
Historical conversations
The talks in Islamabad are considered historic despite the lack of an agreement. On February 28th, the USA and Israel started the war against Iran. The Iranian armed forces responded with rocket fire, attacking targets not only in Israel but throughout the Gulf region. The conflict thus expanded into a regional war. On Wednesday, the USA and Iran agreed on a two-week ceasefire.
The head of negotiations for the USA in Islamabad was Vice President Vance, and the President of the Islamic Republic of Parliament Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf. According to the New York Times, the round of negotiations brokered by Pakistan was the highest-level direct meeting between US and Iranian officials since the Islamic Revolution in Iran in 1979. The paper reported, citing two senior Iranian officials, that Vance and Ghalibaf shook hands. The atmosphere of the meeting was initially described as warm and calm.
Meanwhile, Trump said on Saturday afternoon (US local time) shortly before his departure to Miami that he was indifferent to whether an agreement with Iran would be reached or not. “We’ll win either way,” he told reporters. “We defeated them militarily.”
Centcom: US destroyers pass Strait of Hormuz
At the same time as the negotiations in Pakistan, the US Middle East Regional Command (Centcom) announced that it had begun a naval operation to clear sea mines. Two destroyers passed through the Strait of Hormuz and were deployed in the Arabian Gulf, according to a statement from Centcom on X. Trump said a little later that minesweepers were in action. A few days ago, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards declared an area of the strait as a danger zone and warned of mines in shipping routes.
Centcom also said that the mission should ensure that the road is completely free of sea mines. “Today we began establishing a new passage and will soon share this safe route with the shipping industry to promote the free movement of goods,” Centcom commander Admiral Brad Cooper was quoted as saying.
On Sunday night, the Iranians rejected this. Reports of American ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz are denied, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards said in a statement. Any attempt by military ships to pass through the strait will be met with determined resistance. According to the current regulations, only civilian ships are allowed to pass through, it said. The Iranian Navy had previously warned US warships against crossing the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday and threatened to attack them. (sda/dpa)