President Donald Trump cancelled a planned trip to Islamabad by his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner over the weekend. The move followed the departure from the Pakistani capital of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Following the cancellation, the two sides traded rival accounts of the current state of affairs in their ongoing stand off.  

Trump, speaking to Fox News, professed himself in no hurry for diplomatic progress, saying that ‘We have all the cards. They can call us anytime they want.’ The US President suggested a version of events in which Teheran, pressured by the US blockade of its tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, was showing increased flexibility regarding the issue of the future of its nuclear programme. Trump said: 

The Iranians gave us a paper that should have been better and interestingly, the minute I cancelled it, within 10 minutes, we got a new paper that was much better… They offered a lot but not enough.

The Iranians gave us a paper that should have been better and interestingly, the minute I cancelled it, within 10 minutes, we got a new paper that was much better… They offered a lot but not enough.

Iranian officials, meanwhile, painted an opposing picture of the dynamic. An Iranian defence ministry spokesman quoted by Reuters said that:

The Iranian regime is good at dragging talks out

The Iranian regime is good at dragging talks out

The enemy, whose objective of crippling Iran’s missile and military capabilities has failed, is now seeking an honorable exit from the quagmire of war…Iran is today in firm control of the Strait of Hormuz.  

The enemy, whose objective of crippling Iran’s missile and military capabilities has failed, is now seeking an honorable exit from the quagmire of war…Iran is today in firm control of the........

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