HIBAPRESS
As the world's attention turns towards the Pakistani capital, where American-Iranian talks are expected to begin in order to reach an agreement that ends the war permanently, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Friday that this stage of the American-Iranian negotiations is "decisive," indicating that it "will either succeed or fail in reaching a permanent ceasefire."
Sharif said: These talks represent a "crucial opportunity" that could be a turning point for reaching a final cessation of the conflict that has been ongoing for weeks in the Middle East. He also clarified that "the leadership of the two countries (Washington and Tehran) will begin talks tomorrow in Islamabad," indicating that "his country seeks an advanced stage, which is to stop the war through negotiations." For its part, the British government (Downing Street) announced that Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to his Pakistani counterpart today, and "agreed that the upcoming talks are vital to making progress on a ceasefire towards lasting peace." This came as US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Iran has no negotiating "cards" in the upcoming discussions with the United States in Pakistan, except for controlling maritime navigation in the vital Strait of Hormuz for energy supplies. Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, "The Iranians don't seem to realize that they have no cards in their hands except to blackmail the world in the short term by using international waterways. The only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!" The US President also warned Iran against new strikes in the event that the talks in Pakistan fail, according to what the New York Post newspaper reported on Friday. He said, "We are currently loading the ships with the best ammunition, and the best weapons ever made, even better than what we did before." He added, "Unless we reach an agreement, we will use them very effectively." This comes at a time when US Vice President J.D. Vance is heading to Islamabad in preparation for the upcoming negotiations with Iran, warning it against "manipulating" Washington, while Tehran renewed its adherence to conditions preceding the start of the discussions, especially Israel's cessation of fire in Lebanon. There was also a lot of confusion surrounding the issue of Lebanon and whether it was included in the temporary ceasefire between Iran and America, which Pakistan announced on Wednesday dawn, as Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif confirmed at the time that the two-week truce includes Lebanon, but US President Donald Trump and Vance later announced that it was not included. Then, informed American sources reported that Trump pressured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reduce the raids on Lebanese territories, to announce Netanyahu later in a televised speech, on Thursday evening, that he directed to hold talks with the Lebanese authorities. (Arabic)
