US signals fresh diplomatic push with Iran after stalled talks, as mistrust lingers but backchannel engagement continues and a second round of negotiations remains under consideration.
File image: US President Donald Trump delivers an address to the nation alongside US Vice President JD Vance, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, following US strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, at the White House in Washington, DC. (Reuters/ANI Photo)
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) said the conflict with Iran is “very close to over”, even as negotiations between Washington and Tehran remain stuck after the first round of talks in Islamabad.
The remarks come at a time when both sides are weighing the possibility of a second round of negotiations, with deep mistrust continuing to shape the diplomatic track. The initial talks, aimed at halting hostilities in West Asia, ended without a breakthrough, but backchannel engagement has reportedly continued.
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In an interview with Fox News, Trump expressed confidence that a resolution may not be far off. “I think it’s close to over. I mean, I view it as very close to over,” he said.
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He also suggested that the United States holds a strong strategic position. “If I pulled up stakes right now, it would take them 20 years to rebuild that country, and we’re not finished, but we’ll see what happens,” he added.
The US President further claimed that Tehran is keen to reach an agreement. “I think they want to make a deal very badly.”
However, US Vice President JD Vance offered a more grounded assessment of why the first round of talks failed to deliver results, pointing to decades of distrust between the two countries.
Speaking at a Turning Point USA event at the University of Georgia, Vance said the stalemate was rooted in the absence of sustained high-level engagement over nearly five decades.
“The United States had never had meetings at that level with the Iranian government in 49 years. It’s a meeting that had never before happened. Not Democrat, not Republican. We never had a meeting like that where you have the person who’s effectively running the country in Iran sitting across from the vice president of the United States. That had never happened,” Vance said.
“And what I see, honestly, after 49 years, is there’s a lot of mistrust between Iran and the United States of America. You’re not going to solve that problem overnight,” he added.
Despite this, Vance said there were encouraging signs during the discussions, noting that both sides appeared open to finding common ground.
“I think the people we’re sitting across from wanted to make a deal. And I know the president of the United States told us to go out there and negotiate in good faith. That’s what we did. That’s what we’re going to keep on doing. So, you never know, though,” he said.
The talks in Islamabad lasted around 21 hours, with Vance leading the US delegation alongside Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and senior adviser Jared Kushner.
According to sources cited by CNN, the three have remained in contact with Iranian officials and intermediaries since the discussions, exploring pathways to revive negotiations.
Trump has tasked Vance, Witkoff and Kushner with continuing diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the hostilities.
Washington is now considering a second round of talks, with Islamabad again emerging as a likely venue. Vance is expected to lead the American delegation if negotiations resume, with Witkoff and Kushner also likely to be part of the discussions.
However, officials have indicated that deliberations are still ongoing and no formal schedule has been set.
“Future talks are under discussion, but nothing has been scheduled at this time,” a US official said, quoted by CNN.
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