Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian traveled to Pakistan on Tuesday for talks with officials who have been mediating negotiations between Tehran and Washington on a permanent end to the war in the Middle East. His visit comes as technical teams work on details of the deal, following high-level negotiations in Switzerland on Monday led by US Vice President JD Vance and Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf.
Technical Talks and Nuclear Inspections
Vance stated that the negotiations in Switzerland secured an agreement for International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to visit Iranian nuclear sites. However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters in Tehran on Tuesday that no visits have been scheduled to the facilities earlier bombed by the United States. The IAEA has been in and out of Iran since Israel’s 12-day war against Iran in 2025 but has not been granted access to the bombed enrichment sites targeted by the US in that war.
Iran suggested that ongoing technical talks in Switzerland have led to the creation of specific negotiation groups, including those focused on sanctions relief, nuclear issues, reconstruction, and monitoring, according to a report by the state-run IRNA news agency. It quoted Kazem Gharibabadi, a deputy foreign minister leading the technical talks, saying that the countries involved also formed a contact mechanism over ships moving through the Strait of Hormuz and over the fighting in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah.
Security and Meetings in Islamabad
Security was tight in the area of Islamabad where the Iranian president was to meet with President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. This is Pezeshkian’s first visit since the conflict started with the American and Israeli attack on Iran on February 28. Pezeshkian and Sharif were to hold a joint news conference after their discussions.
In the initial talks, marking the start of a 60-day diplomatic process to reach a permanent deal, Iran and the US agreed to create a “de-confliction cell” to address the fighting in Lebanon between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia group. The US said negotiators also discussed “mechanisms” to ensure the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for oil transit that Iran had effectively blocked during the war, remains open.
Pezeshkian’s Caution and Stance
Ahead of his meetings, Pezeshkian cautioned that “the effectiveness of the talks depends on full commitment to the agreed obligations and their precise implementation.” “Progress on this path will be measured by practical adherence to accepted responsibilities,” he wrote on X. “Statements outside the agreed text do not help advance the negotiations.”
Lebanon Ceasefire and Israeli Concerns
It remains unclear whether the de-confliction cell will be enough to stop fighting between Hezbollah and Israel, which occupies part of Lebanon and insists it must maintain a free hand to attack militants launching attacks into northern Israel. Mediators Pakistan and Qatar said the cell would include the Lebanese government and would “ensure the adherence of the termination of military operations in Lebanon.” However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu raised new questions late Monday, saying his military still has “full freedom of action to thwart any direct or emerging threat to them or to the residents of the north.”
Neither Israel nor Hezbollah are signatories to the US-Iran deal, and Netanyahu has vowed to keep his forces in southern Lebanon until any threat to Israel is eliminated. Hezbollah has refused to halt attacks unless Israel commits to withdrawing. US President Donald Trump later said “we’re going to take a look at it,” when asked about Netanyahu’s comments, adding that he wouldn’t say what action he would take but that the situation would “get solved.” “I’m a problem solver, I get problems solved real fast, including with Bibi,” he said, using a nickname for Netanyahu.
At the moment, the renewed ceasefire in Lebanon, brokered on Saturday, appears to be holding with no new Israeli or Hezbollah strikes reported overnight. Lebanon and Israel planned another round of direct talks in Washington on Tuesday, which are expected to focus on developing a plan for an Israeli withdrawal.
