ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he had canceled a planned trip to Pakistan by senior envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, aimed at reviving peace talks with Iran.
Speaking by phone to Fox News, Trump said he ordered the delegation not to travel, arguing Washington held the upper hand in negotiations with Tehran.
“I've told my people a little while ago they were getting ready to leave, and I said, ‘Nope,’” Trump said, according to Fox News. He added that Iran could contact the United States “anytime they want.”
"Nobody knows who is in charge, including them. Also, we have all the cards, they have none! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!' Trump later said in a post on his Truth Social.
The White House had said a day earlier that Witkoff and Kushner were expected to travel to Islamabad for another round of talks mediated by Pakistan, after earlier negotiations failed to produce a breakthrough.
Trump’s announcement came as an Iranian delegation was in Islamabad for meetings with Pakistani officials. Tehran, however, said its representatives would not hold direct talks with US officials during the visit. The Iranian delegation, led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, has reportedly left Pakistan.
Araghchi said in a post on X late Saturday that his Islamabad trip was a “very fruitful visit,” sharing Tehran’s stance with Pakistani mediators on a “workable framework to permanently end the war on Iran."
“Have yet to see if the U.S. is truly serious about diplomacy," he said in a post on X.
Pakistan has sought to position itself as a mediator between Washington and Tehran following weeks of heightened tensions, disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, and a fragile ceasefire between the two sides.
The canceled trip raises fresh uncertainty over whether a second round of negotiations can be arranged, as both sides remain divided over Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions relief, and maritime security in the Gulf.