Iran’s foreign minister leaves Pakistan, heads to Russia for more talks | US-Israel war against Iran News

Abbas Araghchi will speak to ‘senior officials’ in Moscow, Iran’s foreign ministry says.

Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, has left Islamabad for Moscow, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said, as mediators hope to keep alive the prospect of more Tehran-Washington talks.

Araghchi broke in a trip to Muscat, Oman, between visits to the Pakistani capital and left on Sunday to be in Russia the next day. But there was no indication that direct talks between Iran and the United States would resume.

However, in a sign that indirect efforts are underway, the Fars news agency reported that Iran had sent “written messages” to the Americans via mediator Pakistan, which “crossed some of the red lines of the Islamic Republic of Iran, including nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz.”

But the messages were not part of any negotiations, Fars said.

US President Donald Trump last week indefinitely extended the ceasefire agreed to by Washington and Tehran on April 7, largely halting the fighting that began with joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28.

But a permanent settlement remain elusiveand the economic shock waves of the war continue to reverberate around the world.

Iran has effectively blocked the vital Strait of Hormuz, cutting off large quantities of oil, natural gas and fertilizers from the world market and driving up prices. The US has blockade imposed of Iranian ports in response.

There had been hopes for a new round of talks on Saturday, with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner due to visit Islamabad, but Trump later told Fox News he canceled the tripand said that it was no use “sitting and talking about nothing.”

Trump told the same channel on Sunday: “I said, we don’t do that anymore. We have all the cards. If they want to talk, they can come to us, or they can call us. You know, there’s a phone. We have good, secure lines.”

Asked earlier if the cancellation of the trip meant a return to public hostilities, Trump said: “No, it doesn’t mean that.”

shuttle diplomacy

On Saturday, Araghchi met Pakistan’s military chief Asim Munir, a key mediator, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar before flying to Muscat. I returned to Islamabad on Sunday.

In Russia, Iran’s foreign ministry said it would speak to “senior officials”.

Russia’s foreign ministry confirmed that Araghchi would visit Moscow, but did not say whether he would meet President Vladimir Putin.

Amid the flurry of meetings, Araghchi expressed skepticism about Washington’s intentions, saying he “has yet to see if the US is really serious about diplomacy.”