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President Donald Trump revealed on Fox News on Saturday that he had indiscriminately canceled US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner's trip to Pakistan to discuss Iran.
The president said in an exclusive interview with Fox News' White House correspondent Aishah Hasnie that it is wrong for the American delegation to take an 18-hour trip to Pakistan when the US holds all the cards in the conflict with Iran.
“I told my people a little while ago that they were getting ready to leave, I said, 'No, you're not making an 18-hour flight to get there. We have all the cards. They can call us whenever they want, but you're not going to make another 18-hour flight to keep talking about nothing,'” said Trump.
“And I canceled the trip, I said, whenever they want to call us, we're ready, willing and able, but we're not going to spend a lot of time,” Trump told Fox News.
LIVE UPDATES: TRUMP CANCELS PAKISTAN TRIP FOR IRAN TALKS
Vice President JD Vance speaks at a news conference in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 12, 2026, after meeting with representatives from Pakistan and Iran. Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff listen during the event. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)
Then in a Truth Social post, Trump said Iran was suffering from “a great deal of confusion within its 'leadership'.”
“Nobody knows who's in charge, including them,” Trump wrote.
US special envoy Witkoff and Kushner, who is Trump's son-in-law, were supposed to go to Pakistan this weekend for the second round of US-Iran talks during Operation Epic Fury.
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Vice President J. (Jacquelyn Martin/The Pool)
Before the withdrawal, White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said on Friday “We have seen progress from the Iranian side over the last few days” regarding a possible deal to end the conflict.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday to meet with Pakistan's prime minister.
“It was very fruitful to visit Pakistan, which we appreciate very much for its offices and fraternal efforts to restore peace in our region,” said X following the trip.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi speaks during the opening ceremony of the First Forum of Caspian Rulers in Rasht, Iran, on Nov. 18, 2025. (Shadati/Xinhua)
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“He shared Iran's position on a practical framework for a complete end to the war in Iran. I don't have to see if the US is really serious about negotiations,” he added.
Vice President JD Vance was supposed to go to Pakistan earlier this week for a second round of talks, but he was called to the White House for meetings, and the trip was postponed indefinitely.
Vance, Witkoff and Kushner were in Pakistan earlier this month for the first round of talks with the Iranian, but no deal was reached after their in-person meeting.
