The US delegation, led by Vice President J.D. Vance and including White House envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner is said to number some 300 people, including advisory, technical and security teams. Vance was greeted by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi after disembarking at the Nur Khan Air Base.
In a statement officially confirming the US delegation’s arrival, the Foreign Office (FO) said that Dar welcomed Vance and “commended US commitment to achieving lasting regional and global peace and stability,” reported Dawn.com. The deputy premier “expressed the hope that parties would engage constructively, and reiterated Pakistan’s desire to continue facilitating the parties towards reaching lasting and durable solution to the conflict.”
Dawn notes that ahead of his departure from Washington, Vance described the expected talks as potentially “positive” and said the US was prepared to negotiate in good faith, while cautioning that Washington would not be “receptive” to what it sees as stalling tactics. Trump, however, struck a harder note, claiming that Iran did not have “many cards” left and that military action could resume if the talks failed. He also criticised Tehran over continued restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which remains a key point of leverage in the standoff.
