JD Vance Says ’21-Hour US-Iran Talks End No Deal’, Credits Pakistan For Effort

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar stressed on Sunday that the United States and Iran should continue to uphold their commitment to the ceasefire as talks ended without an agreement.

“It is imperative that the parties continue to uphold their commitment to the ceasefire,” Dar said during a press conference as US Vice President Vance left this morning after announcing the end of negotiations without any result.

Dar expressed deep gratitude to Iran and the United States for responding to the call of Prime Minister Shehbaz for an immediate ceasefire in the region and accepting the invitation to hold peace talks in Islamabad.

He further expressed gratitude to the two sides for appreciating Pakistan’s efforts to help achieve the ceasefire and its role as a mediator.

Dar said: “I, along with the Chief of Defense Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, helped mediate several rounds of intense and constructive talks between the two sides, which continued over the past 24 hours and ended this morning.”

He said that Pakistan hopes that the two sides will continue with a positive spirit to achieve lasting peace and prosperity for the entire region and beyond.

“Pakistan has been and will continue to play its role to facilitate engagement and dialogue between Iran and the United States in the coming days,” he added.

Earlier, US Vice President JD Vance left Pakistan after announcing that intensive discussions with Iran failed to reach an agreement, yet he appreciated Pakistan’s efforts.

“We’ve been going now for 21 hours and we’ve had a number of significant discussions with the Iranians. That’s the good news. The bad news is that we haven’t reached an agreement, and I think that’s bad news for Iran much more than it’s bad news for the United States,” he said while addressing a news conference in Islamabad.

Vance also praised Prime Minister Shehbaz and CDF Field Marshal Munir, saying, “Both incredible hosts, and whatever the shortcomings of the negotiations, it was not because of the Pakistanis who did a fantastic job and really tried to help us and the Iranians bridge the gap and reach an agreement.”

He stated that the simple fact was that there had to be a clear, affirmative commitment that they would not pursue a nuclear weapon or seek the tools that would enable them to quickly develop one.

“That’s the core goal of the president of the United States and that’s what we’ve tried to achieve through these negotiations. Again, their nuclear programs as they are, the enrichment facilities that they have — that they had before they’ve been destroyed,” he added.

The US Vice President stated that they had made their red lines clear and specified what they were willing to accommodate and what they were not. “We have made it as clear as we possibly could and they have chosen not to accept our terms.”

Vance further said he had spoken with President Trump as many as a dozen times during the negotiations. “We talked consistently with the president. I don’t know how many times we’ve talked to him — half a dozen times, a dozen times over the last 21 hours. We’ve obviously also talked to Admiral Cooper, to Pete, to Marco, to the entire national security team. We talked to Scott Bissett a number of times,” he said.

He said they were in constant communication with the team as they negotiated in good faith, saying, “We’re leaving here, and we’re leaving here with a very simple proposal, a method to understand, that’s our final and best offer.”

Earlier Wednesday, Prime Minister Shehbaz announced that Iran and the United States, along with their allies, had agreed to an immediate ceasefire “everywhere, including Lebanon,” with immediate effect. The prime minister invited delegations from both nations to Islamabad to negotiate a final settlement.

A day earlier, US and Iranian delegations arrived in Pakistan to get a final deal. Prime Minister Shehbaz held a meeting with the delegations and reaffirmed Pakistan’s sincere resolve to continue its mediation role.

The Iranian delegation was led by Speaker Bagher Ghalibaf and assisted by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, while the US delegation was led by VP JD Vance along with Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

The United States and Israel launched a joint offensive against Iran on February 28, killing thousands of people in Iran, including then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and leaving tens of thousands injured, with civilian areas, including residential buildings and religious sites, among those affected.

The conflict also expanded geographically. Iran retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel as well as Jordan, Iraq and Gulf countries that host US military assets. It also restricted the movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

To ease tensions, Pakistan had also hosted a quadrilateral foreign ministers’ meeting in Islamabad with representatives from Turkiye, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The meeting caught the attention of the world and was widely appreciated for Pakistan’s efforts.

Pakistan and China also jointly proposed a five-point initiative aimed at restoring peace and stability in the Gulf and the wider Middle East.