Pakistan hosts U.S.-Iran peace talks after weeks of frantic diplomacy : NPR

[ad_1] <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4942x3295+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2F54%2F34f95f8a4a40bdead4b345765ff5%2Fap26101141501437.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4942x3295+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2F54%2F34f95f8a4a40bdead4b345765ff5%2Fap26101141501437.jpg" class="img" alt="A police officer walks past a billboard regarding the United States and Iran negotiations, outside a media facilitation center in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 11, 2026." fetchpriority="high"/> A police officer walks previous a billboard relating to the US and Iran negotiations, outdoors a media facilitation heart in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 11, 2026. Anjum Naveed/AP conceal caption

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Anjum Naveed/AP ISLAMABAD – Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, is about to host peace talks right this moment with negotiators from Iran and the US, together with Vice President J.D. Vance. It is the end result of weeks of frantic diplomacy by Pakistan's leaders, who pitched town because the venue for talks even earlier than they took the lead as a key mediator that each the U.S. and Iran credited for serving to dealer a two-week ceasefire.

The assembly has put Pakistan on the heart of the largest story on this planet, spotlighting its usually sleepy capital that has been making ready for days for high-profile delegations to reach. Forward of the talks, many in Islamabad have been nonetheless attempting to get their heads round the truth that their nation's diplomatic efforts truly labored. "I am a bit shocked," says 19-year-old Khizra Zaheer, standing in a parking zone of a procuring space close to the middle of town. "When did Pakistan get so influential?"

That has been a central query prior to now three weeks as Pakistan transitioned from a quiet go-between to an lively participant in negotiations between the US and Iran, pulling in leaders from Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and China to help its peace efforts earlier than placing ahead a ceasefire plan. The true significance of Pakistan's intervention solely grew to become clear when each side agreed to a pause shortly after a down-to-the-wire plea from the nation's prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif.

President Trump and Iran's international ministry went on to call Sharif and Pakistani military chief Asim Munir, of their ceasefire bulletins. "That was a really uncommon concurrence, as a result of no different nation loved the identical sort of belief from each events," says Rasheed Wali Janjua, director of analysis on the Islamabad Coverage Analysis Institute, a nationwide safety think-tank. "It is a honest evaluation to say that each events are in search of a manner out."

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4530x3020+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F0d%2F08%2Ffaff2bb14db394f13d4e42d71ee1%2Fap26100467277855.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4530x3020+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F0d%2F08%2Ffaff2bb14db394f13d4e42d71ee1%2Fap26100467277855.jpg" class="img" alt="Vice President JD Vance walks to speak with the Press before boarding Air Force Two, Friday, April 10, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md., for expected departure to Pakistan, for talks on Iran." loading="lazy"/> Vice President JD Vance walks to talk with the Press earlier than boarding Air Power Two, Friday, April 10, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md., for anticipated departure to Pakistan, for talks on Iran. Jacquelyn Martin/AP conceal caption

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Jacquelyn Martin/AP Now, Pakistan faces one other tough process throughout its Islamabad talks: attempting to get them to succeed in an settlement that may flip a fragile ceasefire into one thing that lasts. If the talks succeed, it may result in "radically modified perceptions of Pakistan" on this planet, says Ishtiaq Ahmad, professor emeritus at Quaid-i-Azam College in Islamabad. That world relevance, particularly within the eyes of the US, is one thing that Pakistan has pushed for, even because it has struggled with political and financial volatility at residence. "There's a disconnect between Pakistan's diplomatic achievement and the scenario again residence," Ahmad says.

There are additionally potential sticking factors for the Islamabad talks that might derail Pakistan's potential to behave as a dealer of lasting peace, together with the Strait of Hormuz and Lebanon – which has come beneath Israeli assault even after Sharif declared it was coated by the ceasefire. Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam sought Pakistan's assist instantly on Thursday to deliver an finish to those assaults.

Daniel Markey, a senior fellow with the South Asia program on the Stimson Heart, says Pakistan's political management does not see Israel as "a drive that it needs to reckon with," partly as a result of its insurance policies are deeply unpopular there. Islamabad doesn't acknowledge Israel diplomatically, and any indicators prior to now of that political chill easing have been met with public fury.

So, talks in Islamabad have as a substitute centered on dialogue between the US and Iran. The U.S. delegation, led by J.D. Vance, and Iran's delegation, led by parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and international minister Abbas Araghchi, arrived within the capital Saturday. Pakistan's prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, and international minister, Ishaq Dar, are anticipated to facilitate the talks.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7260x4840+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fba%2F7b%2Fe7681cea4b9087067743f5fe8b6a%2Fap26100238809598.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7260x4840+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fba%2F7b%2Fe7681cea4b9087067743f5fe8b6a%2Fap26100238809598.jpg" class="img" alt="Police officers take position in Islamabad, Pakistan, to ensure security ahead of possible negotiations between Iran and the United States, Friday, April 10, 2026. " loading="lazy"/> Cops take place in Islamabad, Pakistan, to make sure safety forward of doable negotiations between Iran and the US, Friday, April 10, 2026. Anjum Naveed/AP conceal caption

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Anjum Naveed/AP They, together with Pakistan's military chief Asim Munir and intelligence chief turned Nationwide Safety Advisor, Asim Malik, have been primary gamers within the nation's diplomatic efforts – the official particulars of which have been stored beneath tight wraps till a ceasefire was introduced. The precise plan for Saturday's assembly has additionally been closely guarded, even up till the morning it's set to happen.

Residents of Islamabad have as a substitute been left studying between the traces in regards to the function their metropolis will play. Earlier this week, a five-star lodge in Islamabad was cleared of its friends for "an vital occasion," and the federal government declared a two-day vacation on Thursday and Friday, with out offering a motive. A extra decisive nod to the "Islamabad Talks" is a slew of billboards which have quietly popped up across the metropolis displaying Iranian, American, and Pakistani flags facet by facet.

Islamabad was in some ways constructed for a second like this; It is a authorities metropolis organized in a neat rectangle that has all main roads resulting in the Crimson Zone, a diplomatic sector housing authorities buildings and most embassies, which often will get cordoned off with hulking transport containers throughout moments of heightened safety.

On Friday earlier than the talks, the standard containers have been absent, however there have been different indicators that one thing is underfoot in Islamabad: traces of barbed wire, concrete obstacles, and police vehicles blocking roads – forcing diversions that left commuters stranded. Automobiles careened the flawed manner on main highways to keep away from site visitors jams, and police frantically waved down their drivers to show them again the place they got here from.

Muhammad Waseem, 43, stood on the facet of a blocked highway along with his son, looking for a motorcycle rider who would decide them up and convey them residence. He stated the inconvenience is a small worth to pay for Pakistan's function within the peace course of.