New Delhi: Former High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh, Veena Sikri, said on Saturday that Iran had urged the US Vice-President (V-P) J.D. Vance to join the peace talks currently underway in Pakistan’s Islamabad, because of his anti-war approach. She also called Pakistan’s role in facilitation of the talks as “choreographed” by the US.
Speaking to IANS, Sikri said, “It is known that a few days ago, US President Donald Trump announced that he would ‘obliterate Iran’, and the ceasefire reportedly took place at the last moment.”
She mentioned that the ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran was a fallout of a major global concern regarding the possible closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
She also added, “With the way it kept on firing, Iran has showed its independence and resiliency.”
Peace talks between US and Iranian delegations are reportedly underway in Islamabad, being facilitated by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Sikri reminded that such talks had also taken place in February in Muscat, which was then mediated by Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi.
“Oman’s Foreign Minister, who was mediating the talks at that time, had spoken about a breakthrough because Iran had reportedly accepted all the conditions of US,” the former High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh said.
She added that despite the reported breakthrough in the previous talks, Israel launched an attack on Iran and America supported it, which is why former Ambassador Sikri feels that “Iran has developed a mistrust” towards them and is therefore sceptical of the talks happening now.
The former diplomat underlined that this, along with Tehran’s previous ordeal of dealing with President Trump’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, is the reason why this time Iran has insisted US Vice-President Vance to come for the talks.
“It is often said in America that JD Vance has always been against war,” Sikri said.
Having highlighted that direct talks between Washington and Tehran have not begun yet, the former diplomat said, “If the direct talks start taking place soon, it can result in some negotiation.”
Citing reports of a draft tag in the initial post on X by Pakistan Prime Minister Sharif after announcement of the ceasefire by the US, she said, “Pakistan has an orchestrated and choreographed role. It is doing whatever America is asking it to do.”
She also referred to reports of Iran having asked the US to release its frozen assets in return for free movement through the Strait of Hormuz, which was later denied by Washington.
“This shows that some kind of bargaining is taking place,” Sikri said.
According to the former diplomat, Iran will not continue the talks if Israel’s attacks on Lebanon does not stop.
“It is being said that Israel does not want these talks to happen because according to them what they had wanted, like regime change in Iran, has not happened yet. Israel might even want to start attacking Iran again,” Sikri said.
(IANS)
