Witkoff, Kushner head to Pakistan for talks with Iran through Pakistani intermediaries

Special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner are heading to Islamabad for conversations about a peace deal with Iran, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Friday afternoon on Fox News.

"I can confirm special envoy Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be off to Pakistan again tomorrow morning to engage in talks, direct talks, intermediated by the Pakistanis who have been incredible friends and mediators throughout this entire process with representatives from the Iranian delegation," Leavitt said.

Vice President JD Vance will not be attending the talks, as had been discussed earlier in the week, but Leavitt said he will be standing by and consulting President Trump alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Friday he was departing for a "timely tour of Islamabad, Muscat, and Moscow," confirming his trip to Pakistan. The Pakistani intermediaries have been trying for weeks to organize a second round of direct U.S.-Iran peace talks.

Leavitt reiterated that the deal with Iran to end the war must include them turning over nuclear material and committing to not building a nuclear weapon.