▲ This photo, released by the Associated Press, shows U.S. President Donald Trump speaking in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington on April 23, 2026. (Yonhap)
▲ This photo, released by AFP, shows U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff (R) and President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner (L) looking on as Vice President JD Vance speaks at a news conference in Islamabad on April 12, 2026. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

US-Iran negotiations

Key U.S. negotiators to depart for Pakistan Saturday for talks with Iran: White House

By Song Sang-ho

WASHINGTON, April 24 (Yonhap) -- Key U.S. negotiators will leave for Pakistan this weekend for peace talks with Iran, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Friday, as Washington has been doubling down on its naval blockade and other measures to pressure Tehran to make a deal to end hostilities.

In an interview with Fox News, Leavitt said that Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law, will be off to Pakistan on Saturday to engage in direct talks mediated by Pakistan.

"The Iranians reached out as the president called on them to do, and asked for this in-person conversation. So the president is dispatching Steve and Jared to go hear what they have to say, and we're hopeful that it will be a productive conversation and hopefully move the ball forward towards a deal," she said.

"President Trump has made his red lines throughout this entire process very clear. He was flexible in extending the ceasefire, and so Steve and Jared will be off to hear what they have to say."

Vice President JD Vance will stay in the U.S., Leavitt said. Vance joined the first round of negotiations with Iran on April 11 and 12.

The press secretary reiterated that Trump "always wants to give diplomacy a chance."

"It's always his first option, and he's willing to do that here again," she said.

CNN said, citing two U.S. officials, that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will participate in the upcoming talks with Witkoff and Kushner. Iran's Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, its top negotiator, will not join, it said.

It remains unclear whether Washington and Tehran can make a breakthrough in the upcoming negotiations, where the U.S. delegation is expected to secure a firm commitment by Iran to renounce its nuclear ambitions.

On Tuesday, Trump announced an extension of a ceasefire with Iran until Tehran submits a "unified" peace proposal, citing a "seriously fractured" Iranian government. The U.S. believes Iran struggles with internal division between hard-liners and moderates, which makes it difficult to come up with a coherent proposal.

The ceasefire has appeared to be on shaky ground as the U.S. continues its naval blockade of Iranian ports, with the Islamic Republic angrily responding to it.

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