Iran: Iran says peace talks with U.S. not close to agreement.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Friday that peace negotiations between Iran and the United States are not close to an agreement. "The ongoing diplomatic process and the senior Pakistani officials' presence in Tehran do not mean that we have reached a turning point or determining situation," Baghaei told state-run IRIB TV, as Pakistan's Army Chief Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi are in Iran's capital for bilateral message exchanges. "We cannot say to have reached a point where an agreement is close; not necessarily, that is not the case," he said, noting that differences between Iran and the United States are such "deep and numerous," and that diplomacy takes time. Baghaei emphasized that talks aim to end hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon, adding that Iran's nuclear program is not on the agenda at this stage. The situation of the Strait of Hormuz and U.S. attacks on Iran-linked ships must also be reviewed and discussed, he said. Baghaei has been formally appointed as the spokesman for the Iranian delegation in talks with the United States, the IRIB reported on Friday. In a decree issued on Friday, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who leads the negotiating team with the United States, named Baghaei as the spokesman for the "Minab 168" delegation. Iran, the United States and Israel reached a ceasefire on April 8 after 40 days of fighting that started with U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28. Following the truce, Iranian and U.S. delegations held one round of peace talks in Pakistan's Islamabad on April 11 and 12, which failed to yield an agreement. Over the past weeks, the two sides have reportedly exchanged several proposed plans outlining conditions for ending the conflict through Pakistani mediation. Shotlist: Tehran, Iran - May 18, 2026: 1. Various of Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesman of Iranian Foreign Ministry speaking at press conference; FILE: Tehran, Iran - Jan 14, 2026 2. Interior of Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; FILE: Tehran, Iran - Jan 25, 2026 3. Iranian Foreign Ministry building exterior; FILE: Iran - Date Unknown 4. Various of national flags of Iran, cityscape, traffic; FILE: Tehran, Iran - Feb 10, 2026 5. Various of traffic, national flags of Iran; FILE: Tehran, Iran - Date Unknown 6. Various of national flags of Iran; FILE: Washington D.C., USA - Oct 2024 7. Various of White House; FILE: Islamabad, Pakistan - 2026 8. Pakistani national flag atop building; 9. Traffic, buildings. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland/Al-Arabiya/Persian language TV Stations outside Iran. Strictly No Access BBC Persian/VOA Persian/Manoto TV/Iran International/Radio Farda]