JD Vance to lead US team in talks with Iran in Pakistan

JD Vance to lead US team in talks with Iran in Pakistan24 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleBernd Debusmann Jrat the White House Vance to lead next phase of negotiations, says White HouseUS Vice President JD Vance will lead a delegation in talks with Iran in Pakistan beginning on 11 April, according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.In a briefing for reporters, Leavitt said the ceasefire between the US and Iran has created an "opening" that could be the start of a long-lasting peace in the region.But details on the various peace proposals which will be discussed remain murky, as is the current state of shipping traffic through the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.Earlier, Iranian forces warned ships in the area that they would be "destroyed" if they attempted to pass through without permission.Leavitt, however, said that what Iran is saying publicly is "different privately". During the relatively short briefing at the White House on Wednesday, Leavitt declared an American "victory". Leavitt said the primary military goals of Operation Epic Fury - including the destruction of Iran's navy, drone and ballistic missile programmes - were achieved. With the ceasefire in place, Vance, along with special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, will head to Pakistan for in-person negotiations with their Iranian counterparts. The details of those talks and the exact proposals being discussed remain unclear. Getty ImagesA US delegation including Vice President Vance, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will meet with their Iranian counterparts in Islamabad on Saturday. Leavitt described media reports of a 10-point Iranian proposal as inaccurate, adding that an initial "fundamentally unserious" Iranian proposal was discarded. Tehran offered a "modified" proposal in response to Trump's vow that a "whole civilization will die" if a deal was not reached, Leavitt said. "The...