Talks between the US and Iran could resume in the next two days, US President Donald Trump said during an interview with the New York Post on Tuesday.
"We are more inclined to go there. It's more likely, you know why? Because the field marshal is doing a great job," Trump added, referring to Pakistan Field Marshal Gen. Asim Munir, who is one of the main people in pushing the negotiations between the two countries.
A US official confirmed to The Jerusalem Post that discussions about a second meeting between Iran and the United States are ongoing, but no date has been set so far.
“Pakistan is really trying to create a situation in which Washington and Tehran meet again, even if it takes place on Turkish soil, in Islamabad, or in Geneva,” the source said.
Additionally, the source added that according to Pakistan, there are still significant gaps for the US and Iran to overcome.
“The biggest gap, of course, was Iran’s refusal to abandon its nuclear weapons program, which became a major point of contention. However, on issues such as the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian oil sanctions, and similar topics, the discussions showed considerable technical depth,” the source said.
A source involved in the talks told Reuters a date had not yet been decided, but both countries could return as early as the end of this week. "No firm date has been set, with the delegations keeping Friday through Sunday open," a senior Iranian source said.
Vance says next step in negotiations up to Iran
Vance said that peace talks between the US and Iran had ended due to the Iranian team’s refusal to approve a deal, and that it’s up to Iran to take the next step in negotiations on Monday evening.
Progress was made during the talks, Vance told Fox News in an interview, both in communicating the US’s hard-line stances and in learning how the Iranians negotiate.
During the negotiations, the US made clear that it would need to take possession of the enriched uranium Iran has in its possession, and that mechanisms would need to be put in place to ensure that Iran would be unable to enrich uranium again, Vance said.
“Those are really the two things where, frankly, the Iranians, I think, did make some progress,” Vance said.
Additionally, Defense Minister Israel Katz said that the US and Israel were aligned in defining the removal of nuclear material from Iran as a precondition for ending the campaign. “The enriched material could serve as a basis for attempts to restart the program,” Katz said.
Separately, US Central Command Commander Brad Cooper arrived in Israel on Tuesday and met with IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir and other senior Israeli officials. The two also discussed operational plans in case President Trump decides to resume the war. “It was an excellent planning and coordination meeting,” a source familiar with the matter told The Jerusalem Post.
Reuters and Danya Saperstein contributed to this report.