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At Last Minute, Trump Cancels Diplomats’ Trip to Iran Talks

State of the Union: The president said “we have all the cards.”
Meeting_Table_Awaits_Secretary_Kerry_and_Iranian_Foreign_Minister_Zarif_Before_Meeting_in_Austria_(24415549615)
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President Donald Trump on Saturday said he had cancelled a trip by top envoys to Pakistan, where they had been expected to revive ceasefire talks with Iranian diplomats.

“I've told my people a little while ago, they were getting ready to leave, and I said, 'Nope, you're not making an 18 hour flight to go there,’” Trump told Fox News. “We have all the cards. They can call us anytime they want, but you're not going to be making any more 18 hour flights to sit around talking about nothing.”

Trump’s decision not to send the envoys—Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner—seemed to come after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had departed Islamabad Saturday evening local time.

Iranian officials say they lack trust in U.S. diplomacy after Trump in late February authorized strikes on Iran during negotiations. This week, Trump extended, indefinitely, a two-week ceasefire that has paused the fighting, though tensions persist in the Strait of Hormuz.

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