The US and Israel on Feb 28 launched what they described as a “pre-emptive” joint strike against Iranian targets, with Trump announcing start of “major combat operations”
In an interview with theAssociated Press, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has ruled out renewal of Washington’s waivers for Iranian and Russian oil.
The spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry, Esmaeil Baqaei, has said on X that no meeting was planned to take place between the US and Iran.
“Iran’s observations would be conveyed to Pakistan,” he said. Talking about Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s visit to Islamabad, he said the delegation will be meeting with high-level officials in “concert with their ongoing mediation and good offices for ending American imposed war of aggression and the restitution of peace in our region”.
Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says he believes key sticking points in negotiations over nuclear issues can be overcome, Anadolu reports.
“As talks on [the] Iran war [are] set to resume tomorrow, I believe that one or two issues — particularly those that had been deadlocked in the nuclear dossier — can be resolved,” Fidan tells journalists after his programme at Oxford University.
Fidan adds that Turkiye is in almost daily contact with all parties involved in the negotiations and welcomes recent steps toward extending a fragile ceasefire.
“We welcomed the initial two-week ceasefire, but we also said at the time that it would not be enough to reach a final agreement,” he says. “That ceasefire has now been extended.
“We are trying to contribute positively and provide encouragement to all sides,” he adds.
European Council President Antonio Costa says “real peace” in the Middle East “can only be achieved by defending international law in a consistent and principled way”, Anadolu reports
Speaking after an informal EU leaders meeting, alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides, Costa says Europe is operating in a “challenging security environment” that requires a “360-degree vision for sustainable peace and security”.
“The European Union is not part of the conflict, but we will be part of the solution,” Costa states, referring to ongoing tensions between the United States, Israel, Lebanon and Iran.
He welcomes recent ceasefires involving the US, Iran, Israel and Lebanon, calling them “welcome developments,” but stresses that all parties must now “engage in good faith to achieve peace”.
“As we support diplomatic efforts towards reaching a negotiated solution to this conflict, our principles are clear: real peace can only be achieved by defending international law in a consistent and principled way,” he adds.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says Israel has become a “direct threat to global security” and urges a “collective” international response, arguing growing instability can no longer be viewed through a purely regional lens, Anadolu reports.
Speaking at Oxford University on global reordering, Fidan says the world is experiencing not merely a geopolitical transition but a deeper transformation.
“What we are witnessing today is not a transition, but it’s rather a transformation,” he explains, arguing states can no longer “outsource their security, their diplomacy or their strategic imagination”.
Referring to the Iran war, which began with US and Israeli strikes, Fidan says the conflict dealt “a heavy blow to global prosperity, security and stability”.
“Israel’s systemic threat to destabilise the region has exceeded local borders and now constitutes a direct threat to global security,” he states, adding that such actions “demand a collective response from the international community as a whole”.
Earlier, Reuters reported that US President Donald Trump claimed while speaking to the news agency that Iran planned to make an offer aimed at satisfying US demands, as peace talks were expected to resume in Pakistan.
“They’re making an offer and we’ll have to see,” Trump said during a phone interview.
Reuters has now shared more details from the conversation, according to which Trump said he did not know what the offer would be yet.
When asked who the US was negotiating with, Trump said: “I don’t want to say that, but we’re dealing with the people that are in charge now.” He declined to provide names.
Asked what is needed to lift the blockade, Trump said: “I’d have to be able to answer that question later. I have to see what they’re offering.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has expressed his pleasure at welcoming Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi upon his arrival at Nur Khan Airbase near Islamabad.
Dar adds that he was accompanied by Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
“[I] look forward to our meaningful engagements aimed at promoting regional peace and stability,” he writes on X.
The Islamabad police say that the Red Zone and Extended Red Zone will be “completely closed to all types of traffic”, according to an advisory.
Similarly, the expressway from Korral to Zero Point will be closed to all traffic, while traffic can be stopped at different times along the Srinagar Highway.
“Entry of all types of heavy traffic into Islamabad from any direction or road will remain prohibited,” the police say. “Owners of heavy vehicles are requested not to travel towards Islamabad during these days to avoid inconvenience.”
Residents of Islamabad have been advised to follow an alternative traffic plan in case of road closures. The plan is as follows:
Residents of G-5, G-6, G-7, F-6, and F-7 should use Margalla Road via 9th Avenue for travel to and from Rawalpindi.
Traffic coming to and from Zero Point via Faisal Avenue will be diverted towards 9th Avenue.
If the road from Zero Point to Korral Chowk is closed, commuters can use Srinagar Highway to 9th Avenue, then Stadium Road, Murree Road (Chandni Chowk), and Rawal Road to reach Korral.
If Club Road is closed from Park Road, traffic will be diverted towards Tramri Chowk.
Citizens travelling between Bhara Kahu and Rawalpindi should use Korang Road, Bani Gala, and Lehtrar Road.
Those travelling between Rawalpindi Saddar and Islamabad should use either Colonel Sher Khan Road via Fakir Aipi Road or 9th Avenue.
Heavy traffic travelling from Peshawar to Lahore via GT Road should use the motorway from Taxila, Chakri Interchange, Chak Beli Road, and then rejoin GT Road at Rawat.
Heavy traffic travelling from Lahore to Peshawar via GT Road should use Chak Beli Road from Rawat to Chakri Interchange, then travel via the motorway towards Taxila.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has said that trucks carrying medicines and other pharmaceutical products will not be stopped from entering Islamabad, which remains under tightened security ahead of potential US-Iran peace talks.
As part of the security arrangements, heavy vehicles and trucks have been denied entry into the city, leading to shortages of items such as medicines.
Media reports, shared by Naqvi on X, showed that trucks carrying medicines, vaccines and other items have been parked outside the city.
“Pharmaceutical vehicles will not be stopped. We will ensure that they face no hurdles in delivering medicines across Islamabad,” the minister says.
Similarly, Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon has issued a statement saying that certain heavy vehicles will be allowed entry into the city.
“Special permission has been granted for vehicles bringing petroleum products, food items, and medicines to enter the city,” he says on X.
“In this regard, the district administration is in continuous contact with foodstuffs, vegetable and fruit distributors, the Drug Regulatory Authority, the pharmaceutical industry and petrol pump owners and suppliers.”
Memon adds that none of these vehicles are being barred from entering the city, and that the ban on other heavy vehicles will remain in place “until further orders”.
When asked by Reuters who the US is negotiating with, Trump said: “I don’t want to say that, but we’re dealing with the people that are in charge now.”
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says that through “Economic Fury” — a reference to the US military campaign ‘Operation Epic Fury’ — Washington is curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
“Economic Fury is imposing a financial stranglehold on the Iranian regime, hampering its aggression in the Middle East, and helping to curtail its nuclear ambitions,” says Bessent in a post on X.
“At [President Donald Trump’s] direction, [the] Treasury will continue to constrict the network of vessels, intermediaries, and buyers Iran relies on to move its oil to global markets,” he adds.
“Any person or vessel facilitating these flows — through covert trade and finance — risks exposure to US sanctions.”
Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani has discussed developments in the Washington-Tehran ceasefire agreement in a phone call with US President Donald Trump, Al Jazeera reports.
Qatar will continue coordinating with partners to support mediation efforts led by Pakistan, Sheikh Tamim says.
Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi has confirmed that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has landed in Islamabad.
In a post on X, he says Tehran’s top diplomat was received by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir and other senior officials.
“During the visit, the Iranian foreign minister will hold meetings with Pakistan’s senior leadership to discuss the latest regional developments as well as ongoing efforts for regional peace and stability,” Andrabi adds.
US President Donald Trump has granted a 90-day extension to a shipping waiver that makes it easier to move oil, fuel and fertiliser around the United States, Reuters reports citing the White House.
The decision adds roughly three months to the existing waiver that was set to expire on May 17, enabling foreign-flagged vessels to move commodities between US ports through mid-August.
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers confirms that Trump issued the extension.
“This waiver extension provides both certainty and stability for the US and global economies,” Rogers says.
The US Treasury Department is sanctioning multiple wallets tied to Iran, thereby freezing $344 million in cryptocurrency, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said in a statement on X, according to Reuters.
The United States has imposed fresh Iran-related sanctions and issued a general license authorising the wind-down of deals involving Chinese company Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery Co, Reuters reports citing a notice on the US Treasury website.
Pope Leo XIV has urged the United States and Iran to return to talks to end the war, Al Jazeera reports.
He says the question is not whether the Iranian regime should change or not, “the question should be about how to promote the values we believe in without the deaths of so many innocents”.
“As a pastor, I cannot be in favour of war,” he tells reporters aboard his plane. “I would like to encourage everyone to find responses that come from a culture of peace and not hatred and division.”
Asked if he condemned Iran’s recent executions, Leo says he denounces “all actions that are unjust” and includes capital punishment on the list.
“I condemn the taking of people’s lives. I condemn capital punishment. I believe human life is to be respected and that all people from conception to natural [death], their lives should be respected and protected.”
