President Donald Trump canceled a planned trip by two of his envoys to Pakistan meant to facilitate peace talks with Iran nearly two months after the war began.
Trump administration Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Special Envoy for Peace Missions Jared Kushner were scheduled to travel Saturday morning to the Pakistani capital of Islamabad and participate in direct talks with an Iranian delegation. Trump, however, announced in a Saturday afternoon Truth Social post that he canceled the trip, stating it would be “oo much time wasted on traveling, too much work!”
“Besides which, there is tremendous infighting and confusion within their ‘leadership,’” the president added. “Nobody knows who is in charge, including them. Also, we have all the cards, they have none! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!”
The White House referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to Trump’s Truth Social post when asked for comment.
About a half hour before Trump sent the post, Axios Global Affairs Correspondent Barak Ravid reported on X that Trump told him over the phone he had canceled Witkoff and Kushner’s trip “due to the Iranian position in the negotiations.”
Ravid wrote in a subsequent X post that Trump had told him, “I see no point of sending them on an 18 hour flight in the current situation . It’s too long.”
“We can do it just as well by telephone. The Iranians can call us if they want. We are not gonna travel just to sit there,” Trump told Ravid.
The president denied his nixing the flight was a sign he would continue the war in Iran when pressed by Ravid.
“No. It doesn’t mean that. We haven’t thought about it yet,” Trump responded.