Backchannel talks between the United States and Iran are unlikely to result in a breakthrough, according to Chinese analysts, who said the core conditions for a ceasefire were unlikely to be met.
However, the US and Iran have given conflicting accounts about peace talks, with Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of the Iranian parliament, describing media reports that Iran had been talking to key Trump aide Steve Witkoff as “fake news”.
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Other reports have said that third countries, including Oman, Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan, were all trying to broker a ceasefire.
Pakistan is reportedly the most likely venue for direct talks, even though the White House has not confirmed that it would attend talks there, describing the situation as “fluid”.
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