Iran wants ceasefire in Lebanon, release of its blocked assets before talks begin in Pakistan

In an X post on Friday, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who is likely to be part of the high-profile delegation, said that two conditions must be met before the start of negotiations.

"Two of the measures mutually agreed upon between the parties have yet to be implemented: a ceasefire in Lebanon and the release of Iran's blocked assets prior to the commencement of negotiations. These two matters must be fulfilled before negotiations begin," he said.

Israeli and Lebanese officials are expected to meet in Washington next week as US President Donald Trump ​seeks to calm weeks of Israeli fighting with Iran-backed Hezbollah that has threatened to derail a fragile US-Iran ceasefire.

Both sides are under pressure from Trump to bring about an end to the fighting, a key demand by Iran in parallel talks due this weekend in Pakistan.

The talks are now scheduled to be held on Saturday, according to official sources, a day later than the date set by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that Tehran has threatened to withdraw from the Islamabad talks if Israeli attacks on Lebanon do not cease.

US Vice President JD Vance on Friday left for Pakistan to participate in peace talks with Iran to end their war, even as there was no official word about the arrival of the Iranian delegation in Islamabad, which has been placed under high security.

Before he departed for Pakistan, Vice President Vance said he was looking forward to the negotiations with Iran and that he expected the Islamabad talks to be "positive".

He also said President Donald Trump gave him "some pretty clear guidelines" on negotiations.

"As @POTUS said, if the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we're certainly willing to extend the open hand. If they're going to try to play us, then they're going to find that the negotiating team is not that receptive," Vance said before boarding the plane.

(With PTI and agency inputs)