Ceasefire extension request ‘not true at this moment’, says White House; Pakistani mediators arrive in Tehran; Trump hints at US-Iran talks imminently

Pakistan’s army chief arrived in Tehran on Wednesday to help mediate talks between the US and Iran after the two sides failed to clinch a peace agreement on the weekend.

Field Marshal Asim Munir and Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, along with a delegation from the country, arrived in Iran’s capital “as part of the ongoing mediation efforts,” Pakistan’s military said in a statement. It shared a photograph of Munir, dressed in military gear, being greeted on his arrival by Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

Pakistan’s Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, right, is greeted by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.AP

Munir has been leading mediation efforts by Pakistan, alongside Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, to find a resolution to the crisis. Islamabad hosted negotiators from the US — led by Vice President JD Vance — and Iran on the weekend, although they were unable to clinch a deal after marathon talks, largely because of differences over Iran’s nuclear program.

The two sides are closer to extending a ceasefire and restarting negotiations about a longer-term peace deal, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday, even as a standoff intensifies over the Strait of Hormuz.

Bloomberg