Islamabad, April 12 US Vice President JD Vance said on Sunday that the talks in Islamabad with Iran failed, as the two sides were unable to bridge the differences despite hectic efforts lasting more than 21 hours.
Vance addressed a press conference here after "substantive discussions" in direct talks between the two sides – the first at this level since 1979 – mediated by Pakistan.
"We have been working on this for 21 hours, and we have had several substantive discussions, which is good news," Vance said.
"The bad news is that we have not reached an agreement," he added.
"We have made it very clear what our red lines are, what we are willing to concede, and what we are not," the US vice president said, adding that the Iranian delegation had "chosen not to accept our terms."
He was asked to elaborate on the main sticking points of what the Iranians rejected, but he refused to go into specifics.
"I will not go into all the details because I don't want to negotiate in public after we negotiated in private for 21 hours. But the simple fact is that we need to see a firm commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon and that they will not seek the means to quickly acquire one," Vance said.
He said preventing Iran from acquiring a "nuclear weapon" was the "core goal of the US president, and that's what we have been trying to achieve through these negotiations."
Vance also praised Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, calling them "incredible hosts."
"Whatever shortcomings there were in the negotiations were not due to Pakistanis, who did an amazing job and really tried to help us and the Iranians bridge the gap and reach a deal," he said.
Separately, the spokesperson for Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmaeil Baqaei, in a message on X, also confirmed that the two sides failed to reach an agreement and that "numerous messages and texts have been exchanged between the two sides."
"In the past 24 hours, discussions have been held on various dimensions of the main negotiation topics, including the Strait of Hormuz, the nuclear issue, war reparations, lifting of sanctions, and the complete end to the war against Iran and in the region," he wrote.
"The success of this diplomatic process depends on the seriousness and good faith of the opposing side, refraining from excessive demands and unlawful requests, and the acceptance of Iran's legitimate rights and interests."
Baqaei also expressed appreciation to the "government and the warm-hearted and noble people of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for hosting the negotiations and their benevolent efforts in advancing this process."