Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi met Pakistan’s Interior Minister Syed Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran on Friday as diplomatic efforts intensified to end the ongoing U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. Iranian media said Pakistan was helping facilitate communication between Tehran and Washington in hopes of finding a framework for peace.
The meeting came just two days after Naqvi reportedly delivered the latest American proposals to Iranian officials. According to Iranian news agencies, discussions focused on narrowing differences over Iran’s uranium stockpile and Tehran’s control measures in the Strait of Hormuz — two major sticking points in the negotiations.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there were “good signs” in the talks but warned that any attempt by Iran to impose tolls on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz would make a deal impossible. The strategic waterway, through which nearly one-fifth of global oil and LNG shipments once passed, has seen shipping traffic fall sharply since the war began.
President Donald Trump also insisted Washington would eventually seize or destroy Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile, while Tehran maintained that its nuclear activities were for peaceful purposes.
The conflict has rattled global energy markets, pushing oil prices higher and fueling fears of inflation worldwide as uncertainty over a diplomatic breakthrough continues.
