Zürcher Nachrichten - No Iran delegation sent to US talks yet as truce expiry nears

Iran and the US have accused each other of breaching the two-week truce that is set to end by Wednesday, as uncertainty grows over a push to stop the war from resuming.

During initial talks in Pakistan earlier this month, the highest-level discussions between the foes since the founding of the Islamic republic in 1979, analysts pointed to the seniority of the delegations as an indicator of a willingness to strike a deal.

But those talks collapsed without an agreement, with Iran since closing the Strait of Hormuz again and US President Donald Trump announcing a blockade of Iranian ports.

"So far, no delegation from Iran has departed for Islamabad, Pakistan; whether it is the main or subsidiary delegation; primary or secondary," Iranian state TV said, dismissing reports suggesting otherwise.

Trump has accused Iran of firing on ships in the crucial trade route it has choked, while Tehran says the US blockade and seizure of a ship violated the ceasefire deal.

Iranian officials say they feel the Trump administration has not acted in good faith in negotiations and refused to back down from what it called excessive demands.

Its parliament speaker said the country would not accept talks "under the shadow of threats" from the US leader and would "show new cards on the battlefield" if conflict resumed.

But residents in the Iranian capital who spoke to Paris-based AFP journalists say life has only got worse, squeezed by the government and the war's impact.

"This cursed ceasefire has broken us. There is no light at the end of the tunnel," said Saghar, 39.

"The situation is terrible. I don't know anyone around me who is doing well."

- 'Bombs start' -

The truce theoretically ends overnight Tuesday, though in comments to Bloomberg, Trump said the end was a day later, on Wednesday evening Washington time and it would be "highly unlikely" he would extend the truce.

Trump told PBS News that Iran was "supposed to be there" at the talks in Pakistan.

"We agreed to be there," he said, warning that if the ceasefire expired "then lots of bombs start going off".

He said the US blockade of Iran's ports would not end until there was a deal, in which Washington is pressing for Iranian concessions on its contested nuclear programme.

Experts said Iran's signalling was part of a bid to put pressure on Washington, with its leadership wary of signing a deal after US strikes last year in the middle of diplomatic efforts.

"The current standoff between the United States and Iran is no longer a clash of capabilities but rather a struggle of political endurance and bargaining leverage," Daniel Byman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies wrote in a commentary.

Trump said he was not under any time pressure despite the ceasefire deadline.

"I read the Fake News saying that I am under 'pressure' to make a Deal. THIS IS NOT TRUE! I am under no pressure whatsoever, although, it will all happen, relatively quickly!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Despite the ongoing brinkmanship, oil prices fell on Tuesday while stocks rose on lingering hopes for a deal to end the conflict.

In Islamabad, heavily armed police and soldiers on Tuesday secured the city's government quarter, which was virtually shut down.

That included the Serena hotel, which hosted the last round of negotiations and where guests had been asked to vacate the premises in recent days.

The rest of the city also saw a beefed up police presence, with offices, businesses and schools braced for shutdown orders.

Some schools and universities had already moved their students to distance learning for the week, and city authorities have banned the entry of trucks and other heavy vehicles.

- New Lebanon talks -

A separate 10-day ceasefire agreed between Israel and Lebanon was announced on Friday and included Hezbollah, whose rocket fire in support of Iran drew Lebanon into the war.

Israel and Lebanon, which have no diplomatic relations, will hold a second round of talks in Washington on Thursday, a State Department official told AFP.

Sporadic violence has continued and Israel's military warned civilians against returning to dozens of villages in southern Lebanon, claiming Hezbollah's activities were violating the truce.

Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed at least 2,387 people since the start of the war, a Lebanese government body said in its latest toll.

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G.Kuhn--NZN