After Cancelling Islamabad Round 2 Talks, Trump To Meet Top Officials To Discuss Iran Situation

Washington: US President Donald Trump plans to meet with top national security officials to discuss the ongoing stalemate in discussions with Iran, reports indicated, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

The meeting comes after the US president abruptly canceled plans for his top envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to travel to Pakistan for another round of negotiations over the weekend.

It is expected that officials might discuss Trump’s options for moving ahead, including whether or not to resume the US bombing campaign that’s on hold after the president extended the ceasefire last week.

Not Making 18-Hour Flight

Earlier, in a significant blow to the delegation-level peace talks between Washington and Tehran in Pakistan, US President Donald Trump said that he has unilaterally cancelled a planned trip by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad.

"I've told my people a little while ago they were getting ready to leave, and I said, 'Nope, you're not making an 18 hour flight to go there. We have all the cards. They can call us anytime they want, but you're not going to be making any more 18 hour flights to sit around talking about nothing’," Trump was quoted as saying to Fox News.

Iran FM Makes Short Visit

The Iranian delegation, led by Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, which was in Islamabad for the peace talks, departed the Pakistani capital on Saturday evening after a long day of high-level meetings. Tehran delivered an "official list of demands" to Pakistani leaders directed at US and Israel to achieve a solution to the war in West Asia.

Pakistan's top civilian and military leadership met at the residence of the Pakistani Prime Minister for a meeting with the Iranian delegation that lasted approximately two hours.

However, Araghchi was back in Islamabad on Sunday evening, while on his way back from Muscat and before leaving for Moscow.

ALSO READ: 'Not Making 18 Hour Flight': Trump Unilaterally Cancels Delegation-Level Talks In Islamabad