Speculation Iran peace talks have entered sensitive stage as Trump skips son's wedding

US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump skipped his son’s wedding to stay in Washington due to “circumstances pertaining to government”, fuelling speculation that peace talks with Iran had entered a sensitive stage.

Meanwhile, Tehran accused the US of “excessive demands”, Iranian media said on Saturday, as US media reports raised the prospect that Washington was mulling new strikes and leaders of the Islamic republic considered the latest peace proposal.

Pakistan’s army chief arrived in Tehran on Friday to bolster mediation, which Trump has described as teetering on the “borderline” between renewed attacks and a deal to end the war, which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February and led to competing blockades around the strategic Strait of Hormuz that have roiled the global economy.

Weeks of negotiations since an 8 April ceasefire – including historic face-to-face talks hosted by Islamabad – have still not produced a permanent resolution or restored full access to the strait, choking vast quantities of global oil supply.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a call with UN Secretary-General António Guterres that Tehran was engaged in the diplomatic process despite “repeated betrayals of diplomacy and military aggression against Iran, along with contradictory positions and repeated excessive demands” by the US, according to the ministry.

US media outlets Axios and CBS News, citing unnamed sources, reported the White House was considering strikes on Iran, although both added a final decision had not been made yet.

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US officials have repeatedly raised the prospect of renewed action against Iran if a deal were not reached, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying on the sidelines of a Nato conference in Sweden that there had been “some progress” towards a peaceful resolution but “things were not there yet”.

“We’re dealing with a very difficult group of people. And if it doesn’t change, then the president’s been clear he has other options,” he said.

Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir landed in Tehran on Friday where he met with Araghchi late into the night to discuss “the latest diplomatic efforts and initiatives aimed at preventing further escalation”, according to the official IRNA news agency.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei cautioned that the visit did not mean “we have reached a turning point or a decisive situation” with “deep and extensive” disagreements remaining, according to Iran’s ISNA news agency.

Baqaei said a delegation from Qatar had also held talks with the Iranian foreign minister on Friday.

“In recent days, many countries – both regional and non-regional – have been trying to help bring the war to an end … However, Pakistan remains the official mediator,” he said.

Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar – who have played a crucial role in mediation between the warring sides – flew to China, Iran’s top trading partner, for a four-day visit in which efforts to resolve the Middle East crisis were expected to be discussed.

With additional reporting from AFP

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