Pakistani delegation arrives in Iran to deliver message from the US

[0:00] Diplomatic efforts to end the war between the U.S., Israel and Iran are intensifying. [0:05] A Pakistani delegation arrived in the Iranian capital a short while ago. [0:09] Army chief Asim Mounia is leading the delegation, which is set to deliver messages from the United States. [0:16] Iran's foreign ministry says that Tehran and Washington have been exchanging messages since talks in Islamabad ended on Sunday. [0:23] Regarding the talks, the exchange of messages continues. [0:29] Since Sunday, when the Iranian delegation returned to Tehran, several messages have been exchanged through Pakistan. [0:35] Our positions have been expressed in those exchanges. [0:39] Pakistan's prime minister is also trying to facilitate a second round of negotiations before a temporary ceasefire expires in a week. [0:47] Shabazz Sharif arrived in Saudi Arabia as part of a regional tour that includes stops in Qatar and Turkey. [0:53] President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is pushing for an extension of that ceasefire. [0:58] Erdogan says that Ankara is working to ease tension between the warring sides and to ensure that negotiations continue. [1:07] Despite all the difficulties encountered in the negotiation process between Iran and the United States, we have not lost hope. [1:15] We are making the necessary suggestions and attempts to reduce tensions, extend the ceasefire and continue the negotiations. [1:22] The window of opportunity opened by the ceasefire must be taken advantage of to the fullest extent. [1:32] Pakistan foreign ministry sources told Al Jazeera that it's again offered to host talks. [1:37] Pakistan, it seems, determined to get these parties back around the table. [1:41] That's right, and we know that since the delegation of the United States and Iran left on Sunday morning, [1:54] there have been messages that have been exchanged at the working group level. [1:59] And so it is not surprising that we can confirm, as well as not only the foreign ministry, [2:06] but the Pakistani military confirming that this delegation is now in Tehran. [2:12] It is, as you point out, headed up by the military chief or field marshal and is being received by the Iranian foreign minister. [2:21] Now, their messaging that they're carrying is still a bit of a mystery. [2:26] All we know is that this is a message from Washington that is being delivered by Islamabad to Tehran. [2:32] And the motive for all of this is, of course, to get the second round of direct talks between the United States and Iran going. [2:42] Now, it's not surprising that the field marshal is leading up this delegation, [2:46] given the fact that we know Donald Trump has struck a rapport with him and that they get along well. [2:52] And that, we believe, is part of what has facilitated this communication back and forth. [2:57] But again, the U.S. president himself had said that these talks would take place in the coming days. [3:03] And I can tell you, the signals on the ground certainly indicate that that's imminent. [3:07] Not only is security extremely tight and getting more so by the day, but also hotels are filling up. [3:15] And I can tell you, after speaking to U.S. officials here at the embassy, [3:19] they also said they were preparing for some sort of event, but would not give a specified time. [3:25] Our White House correspondent, Kimberly Halkert, reporting live from Islamabad. [3:29] Kimberly, many thanks indeed. [3:30] Let's bring in Al Jazeera's Ali Hashim, who is live for us in Iran's capital, Tehran. [3:35] What are Iranian officials saying, Ali, about the prospect of another round of talks? [3:43] Well, Adrian, the Iranian officials just received the Pakistani commander-in-chief, [3:51] who arrived in Tehran alongside with a senior delegation. [3:55] According to what's circulating, they are conveying an American message to the Iranian leadership. [4:05] Now, we expect him to meet with Abbas al-Akhti. [4:09] Already he met him at the airport. [4:11] We expect him also to meet probably with Mohammed Baagher Khalibaf, if security measures allow. [4:19] But the most important thing that we understood that this visit is mainly to set the timing for the next Iran-U.S. talks [4:32] that is going to happen in Islamabad. [4:35] Yesterday we spoke to a senior Iranian official who said there's nothing yet set, [4:40] but we know that if there's anything going to happen, then it's going to happen in Islamabad. [4:44] Now we know that the Pakistanis are here to do the last, put the last touches for the next round. [4:54] Also, it seems that more and more deliberation is going on between the Americans and the Iranians. [5:01] There are kind of messages being exchanged between the two sides in order to get closer and closer to the framework that they can agree on. [5:15] In the past few days there were suggestions that the next meeting is going to be on the level of technicians and experts. [5:25] Now things might change and the meeting could see both the experts technicians on one layer meeting and on the other layer politicians, officials, just like the last time.