Pakistan's army chief has arrived in Tehran for further peace talks to end the US-Israeli war in Iran, hours after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio signalled "slight progress" was being made.
Field Marshal Asim Munir was welcomed by Iran's Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni and his Pakistani counterpart Mohsin Naqvi, who had been in Tehran on two separate visits in the past week, meeting with the Iranian president and foreign minister.
However, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the visit did not mean "we have reached a turning point or a decisive situation" with "deep and extensive" disagreements remaining, according to Iran's ISNA news agency.
Speaking during a NATO meeting of foreign ministers in Sweden, Rubio said he did not want to exaggerate the progress, saying there had been “a little bit of movement and that's good.”
His comments came after US President Donald Trump said he was holding off on a military strike againstIran because “serious negotiations” were underway. Trump has been threatening for weeks that the ceasefire reached in mid-April could end if Iran does not make a deal, with shifting parameters for striking such an agreement.
He also described the stop-start negotiations this week as teetering on the "borderline" between a deal and renewed attacks.
"We're dealing with a very difficult group of people. And if it doesn't change, then the president's been clear he has other options," Rubio said.
Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran was engaged in the diplomatic process despite what he called "repeated betrayals of diplomacy" by the US and "military aggression against Iran", according to Iranian news agency Tasnim.
"Despite its strong suspicion of the United States, the Islamic Republic of Iran has entered this diplomatic process with a responsible approach and with all seriousness and is striving to reach a reasonable and fair result," Araghchi said.
Strait of Hormuz remains a sticking point
Baqaei said the status of the Strait of Hormuz and a retaliatory US blockade of Iranian ports were also under discussion.
The future of the strategic maritime chokepoint remains a key sticking point, with fears growing that the global economy will suffer as pre-war oil stockpiles run down.
Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for the shipment of oil, gas, fertiliser and other petroleum products. The US is blockading Iranian ports and has redirected 94 commercial vessels and disabled four others since mid-April, according to US Central Command.
At the NATO meeting in Sweden, Rubio said he discussed reopening the strait with other foreign ministers. He said there needs to be a “plan B” if Washington and Tehran fail to reach a deal.
“Someone’s going to have to do something about it, OK?” Rubio said, insisting that Iran was not going to “voluntarily reopen” the strait.
On Friday, the European Union made a technical change to expand the scope of its existing Iran sanctions regime to target individuals involved in the closure, deeming Iran's blockade "contrary to international law".
