US President Donald Trump cancelled a planned trip to Pakistan by envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff for peace talks with Iran, Fox News reported on Saturday. The move came as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left Pakistan even before the arrival of the US delegation, leaving the second round of negotiations in tatters.Earlier in the day, Iran said it would not meet directly with the US negotiating team in Pakistan. Araghchi met Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Mohd Ishaq Dar and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir.After the meeting, Araghchi, in a statement, said he had met PM Sharif and “explained our country’s principled position on the latest developments related to the ceasefire and the complete end of the war”. The statement said Sharif “expressed confidence” that the negotiating process would continue.Araghchi is also expected to have presented a new response to the US peace proposal. On Friday, he posted on X: “Embarking on a timely tour of Islamabad, Muscat and Moscow. Purpose of my visits is to closely coordinate with our partners on bilateral matters and consult on regional developments. Our neighbours are our priority.”Earlier on Friday night, Esmaeil Baqaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, said, “No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the US. Iran’s observations would be conveyed to Pakistan.”Diplomats from Iran and the US are expected to engage in negotiations facilitated by Pakistani officials in Islamabad this weekend. Trump earlier this week announced an indefinite extension of a two-week ceasefire between the two sides.Meanwhile, away from the peace talks, Tehran and Washington remained locked in a war of words. Iran warned that if the US continued its blockade of Iranian ports it would “face the response of Iran’s armed forces”, Iran’s top military command said on Saturday, as reported by the semi-official Tasnim news agency.Iran possesses “greater authority and readiness than before to defend sovereignty, territory, and national interests,” Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said, addressing the US.In the US, the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Friday called for an end to negotiations with Iran and resumption of military strikes. Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican like Trump, posted on X, “The time is over for negotiations with Iran’s regime. The radical successors of Khamenei can never be trusted to keep any promise or agreement. Our Commander-in-Chief should direct his skilled military leaders to finish destroying Iran’s conventional military capabilities and eliminate any last remnants of their nuclear programme.”