Iran’s foreign minister leaves Pakistan, heads to Russia for more talks

Abbas Araghchi will speak with ‘senior officials’ in Moscow, Iran’s Foreign Ministry says.Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, has left Islamabad for Moscow, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, as mediators hope to keep the prospect of more Tehran-Washington talks alive.Araghchi sandwiched a trip to Muscat, Oman, in between visits to the Pakistani capital, leaving on Sunday to be in Russia the following day. But there was no indication that direct talks between Iran and the United States would resume.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘State of war’: Why Israel has escalated attacks in Gazalist 2 of 4Iran shifts economic focus to essentials during war uncertaintylist 3 of 4Israel and Hezbollah trade blame as evacuation orders signal escalationlist 4 of 4Has Iran exposed the limits of what US can achieve by force?end of listHowever, in a sign that indirect efforts were ongoing, the Fars news agency reported that Iran had transmitted “written messages” to the Americans via mediator Pakistan, which were “about some of the red lines of the Islamic Republic of Iran, including nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz”.But the messages were not part of any negotiations, Fars said.US President Donald Trump last week indefinitely extended the ceasefire that Washington and Tehran agreed to on April 7, which has largely halted the fighting that began with joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.But a permanent settlement remains elusive, and the economic shockwaves of the war continue to reverberate around the globe.Iran has effectively blocked the vital Strait of Hormuz, cutting off vast quantities of oil, natural gas and fertiliser from the global market, and sending prices soaring. The US has imposed a blockade of Iranian ports in response.There had been hopes for a new round of talks on Saturday, with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner due to visit Islamabad, but Trump later told Fox News he had scrapped the trip, saying there was no point “sitting around talking about nothing”.