Ceasefire talks between the U.S. and Iran ended in the early hours of Sunday without an agreement, raising questions about what happens when a current two-week truce expires on April 22.
As the talks wrapped up in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, both sides blamed each other for the failure.
There was no word on whether negotiations will resume, and President Donald Trump made new threats against Iran.
The setback does not necessarily mean the war will resume. But it showed how entrenched the sides remain after an inconclusive 40-day war that inflicted heavy damage on Iran, reverberated across the region and shook the global economy.
Negotiators will now return to their capitals and reconsider their next moves.
Here’s a closer look at where things stand:
Views differ on how to end the war
When the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28, they pledged to eliminate Iran’s nuclear and missile programs and its support for armed proxy groups across the region.
The U.S. has presented a 15-point plan that is believed to include these same demands. While the U.S. proposal hasn’t been made public, Pakistani officials told The Associated Press that it also calls for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway through which one-fifth of the world’s oil flows. Iran’s closure of the strait sent oil prices spiking and global markets plunging.
Iran has countered with a 10-point plan of its own. It calls for Iranian control over the strait, an end to the war and halting attacks on its proxies, including the powerful Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon as well as demands for compensation for the damage wrought by the war.
Setback in Islamabad
Neither side appears to have budged much from its ceasefire terms during face-to-face talks over 21 hours.
Vice President JD Vance, who led the American delegation, said that Iran had failed to give assurances that it will not seek to develop a nuclear weapon.
Iran has long denied seeking nuclear weapons but has insisted on a civilian nuclear program that includes uranium enrichment – a key step toward developing a weapon. Experts say that Iran’s current stockpile of enriched uranium is just a short technical step from being weapons grade.
“We need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon and they will not seek the tools that would enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” Vance said.
