Iran raises sticking points even before talks in Pakistan begin

A senior Iranian official says major parts of the two-week ceasefire negotiated with President Trump must be implemented before deeper negotiations begin in Pakistan on Saturday.

The demands from Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf underscored the tenuous nature of talks to end the war.

“Two of the measures mutually agreed upon between the parties have yet to be implemented: a ceasefire in Lebanon and the release of Iran’s blocked assets prior to the commencement of negotiations,” Mr. Ghalibaf said on social media. “These two matters must be fulfilled before negotiations begin.”

Israel’s large-scale attacks on Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon are a sticking point in the fragile truce that led to a pause in U.S. airstrikes on Iran.

The Iranian side said a truce in Lebanon was included in the two-week ceasefire planned by Mr. Trump and Iranian leaders, though Israel and the U.S. say it was not part of the deal.

Israel continued to pound Lebanon on Friday. The campaign sparked pushback from U.S. allies in Europe, who say Israel’s assault is killing civilians and could unravel a much-needed pause in the Middle East fighting.

Mr. Trump shot back in his own social media posts on Friday. He suggested Iranian leaders must negotiate if they want to keep living and said their control over the Strait of Hormuz is not a long-term strategy.

“The Iranians don’t seem to realize they have no cards, other than a short term extortion of the World by using International Waterways. The only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!” Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Mr. Ghalibaf outlined demands for the weekend talks while Vice President J.D. Vance was in mid-flight to Islamabad.

Mr. Vance is part of a U.S. negotiating team that includes envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law.

Mr. Trump and his defense team say the U.S. achieved its military aims in Iran. They want to negotiate a lasting peace that prevents Iran from getting a nuclear weapon and constrains its missile program and ability to fund terror proxies in the Mideast.