Five big key points as US and Iran meet for peace talks wit Pakistan on ending Middle East conflict

US and Iranian officials don start direct trilateral talks wit Pakistan for Islamabad

Officials from both countries bin meet earlier wit Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif - details of negotiations still dey scarce.

US Vice President JD Vance bin land Pakistan capital Islamabad alongside President Donald Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff for di peace talks wit Iran on Friday.

Meanwhile, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, wey recently emerge as prominent govment figure, and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrive for di middle of di night ahead of di talks.

As hosts of di ogbonge US-Iranian talks, di Pakistani govment officials dey make optimistic noises, as dem dey claim say unlike many odas, dem enjoy di trust of both sides.

Di man wey dey head di US delegation Vice-President JD Vance, also dey optimistic.

"If di Iranians dey willing negotiate in good faith," e tok bifor e comot US, "we too go extend di open hand."

But e draw warning too.

"If dem try to play us, dem go meet us too for house."

Lebanon

Israel ongoing campaign against Iran Lebanese ally, armed group Hezbollah, don threaten to scata di toks even bifor e start.

"Di continuation of these actions go render negotiations meaningless," Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian post on X.

"Our fingers remain on di trigger. Iran no go ever abandon dia Lebanese sisters and brothers."

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu say "no ceasefire" no dey wen e reach Hezbollah, but Israel repeated warning to residents of Beirut southern suburbs to evacuate neva result in any further action.

US President Donald Trump tok say Israel action now for Lebanon go be "more low key", and di US State Department say direct toks between Israel and Lebanon go hold for Washington next week.

Weda e go dey low key enough to satisfy Iran na wetin pipo go dey watch.

Strait of Hormuz

Anoda issue dem go tok about na di crucial oil shipping passage - di Strait of Hormuz.

Trump say Iran dey "do a very poor job" wit di way and manner dem dey allow ships pass through di strait.

"Dis no be di agreement we get!" e tok for one Truth Social post, wia e accuse Iran say dem dey "dishonourable".

Very few vessels dey pass through, with hundreds of ships plus an estimated 20,000 seafarers still trapped inside di Gulf.

Afta dem don achieve dia chokehold on dis vital waterway, Iran dey determined to formalise am, as dem call am sovereign Iranian water and dey tok about new set of rules to govern wetin fit pass and wetin no fit pass through.

On Thursday, dem announce di creation of new transit routes, north of di two existing traffic separation channels.

For inside statement, Iran say di new routes dey necessary "to avoid di presence of various types of anti-ship mines for di main traffic zone".

Reports say some of di ships wey make am through in recent weeks pay $2m (£1.5m) toll, Trump don warn Iran say dem "beta no dey charge fees to tankers".

Nuclear

Arguably di biggest, and certainly di most long-standing, bone of contention na nuclear.

Trump say e bin launch Operation Epic Fury to make sure Iran "no go ever get nuclear weapon".

Iran say dem no ever try to build a bomb - claim wey most western govments no believe – but insist say as signatories to di Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, dem get right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes.

Iran 10-point proposal, wey Trump describe as "a workable basis on which to negotiate" include demand for international recognition of dia enrichment rights.

Trump 15-point plan reportedly demand say make Iran "end all uranium enrichment on Iranian soil". But wen tori pipo ask about am earlier dis week, Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth say Iran no go "ever get nuclear weapon or get di capability to get one".

E take years for international negotiators to reach di 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), wey tackle dis thorny issue in enormous detail.

Di two sides ready to discuss new deal?

Iran Regional Allies

Iran network of regional allies and proxies – Hezbollah for Lebanon, di Houthis for Yemen, Hamas for Gaza plus assortment of militias for Iraq – don give Tehran regional clout, and allow Iran to exercise wetin dem dey often call "forward defence" for dia long-running disputes wit Israel and the United States.

Since di start of di Gaza war for October 2023, di network wey Iran dey call di "Axis of Resistance" don dey under constant attack. One part of am, di regime of di former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, no dey exist again.

But Israel see wetin e call di "Axis of Evil" as representative of one existential threat, wey need to dey fully eradicated.

For time wen di Iranian economy dey struggle, many Iranians go also like see dia govment spend less on foreign adventurism and more on making dia lives easier.

But sign no too dey yet say Iran ready to give up on dia allies.

Sanctions Relief

Di Islamic regime don suffer crippling international sanctions for decades.

Dem dey demand di lifting of all US and international sanctions as part of any deal.

On Friday, speaker of parliament, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, tok say dem must release $120bn (£89bn) of frozen Iranian assets bifor negotiations start.

Dis, e say na one of di two previously agreed measures (di oda one na ceasefire for Lebanon).

But di 7 April statement from Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announce say di two-week ceasefire no tok anytin about di release of frozen assets. E no dey clear which agreement Qalibaf dey refer to.

E dey very unlikely say Trump administration go wan make agree to dat agreement kust to get di talks started.