Gate News message, April 25 — Iran denied that its officials would meet U.S. negotiators in Pakistan this weekend, even as the Trump administration sent two senior envoys to Islamabad. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said late Friday that no meeting was planned between Iran and the U.S., though Iran’s observations would be conveyed to Pakistan through intermediaries.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Fox News that U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would travel to Pakistan on Saturday morning for “direct talks” with Iranian counterparts. Leavitt stated that “the Iranians reached out” after President Donald Trump told them to do so, and that Trump was sending the envoys “to go hear what they have to say.” Vice President JD Vance will not join the trip; he led the first U.S. team that met in Islamabad two weeks ago, which ended without agreement. A second U.S. trip had been expected earlier this week but was delayed after Iranian officials said they would not attend. Trump told Reuters that Iran would be “making an offer,” though he said he did not know what it would be.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is intensifying economic and military pressure. Trump told Reuters the U.S. will not lift the blockade on Iranian ports until a deal is reached. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told the Associated Press that Washington will not renew a one-time waiver allowing buyers to purchase Iranian oil already at sea, and also does not plan to renew a waiver for Russian oil and petroleum products. Bessent said the U.S. expects Iran “to start shuttering production in the next two, three days,” which he said “will be very bad for their wells.”
The U.S. Treasury sanctioned Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery Co., Ltd., a Chinese independent refinery, over purchases of Iranian oil products. The company has bought billions of dollars in Iranian crude and petroleum products. Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has slowed significantly following Iranian threats and the U.S. naval blockade that began last week.
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