
US must talk directly, demands Iran as Pak, Turkey and Egypt try to broker peace
India Today
President Trump halted strikes on Iran for five days even as Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt tried to talk to both sides about a peace deal. Tehran has insisted that Washington DC needs to be a direct participant in the talks, given it began the war.
There was a glimmer of hope for the world as President Donald Trump halted strikes on Iran for five days, giving peace a chance. This came amid reports of Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey trying to broker peace in a war that has entered its fourth week now. Iran, on its part, has demanded that the US, as the party that began the war, must be a direct participant.
According to a report by the US news outlet, Axios, citing an unnamed American source, Turkey, Egypt, and Pakistan have been passing messages between the US and Iran over the past two days.
The foreign ministers of the three countries held separate talks with White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, reported Axios.
"The mediation is ongoing and making progress. The discussion is about ending the war and resolving all outstanding issues. We hope to have answers soon," a source familiar with the details told Axios.
According to the Axios report, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had called on Sunday with Witkoff, Araghchi and his counterparts from Pakistan, Turkey and Qatar, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said, adding that Abdelatty stressed the importance of "containing the broader effects of the conflict and preventing it from expanding."
This comes after US President Donald Trump loudly announced via a post on Truth Social that the US was going to stop attacking Iran's power generation facilities after having what he described as "very good and productive" conversations with Iran. This came hours ahead of a 48-hour deadline that threatened further escalation in the war that has entered its fourth week.

Leon Panetta said Iran war was not an unexpected risk. He pointed out that for years, US security officials have known Iran could disrupt global oil supplies by blocking the Strait of Hormuz. According to him, this was a well-known danger, but one that appears to have been overlooked in the current conflict.












