For the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the United States and Iran are set to hold high-level diplomatic talks. The historic meeting is taking place this afternoon in Islamabad, Pakistan, marking the first formal face-to-face dialogue between the two nations since the 2015 nuclear agreement. Relations had sharply deteriorated after the U.S. withdrawal from that deal in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump.

The U.S. delegation, led by Vice President J.D. Vance and including Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, arrived in Islamabad on Saturday morning. They were received by Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar and Army Chief General Asim Munir. Pakistan’s foreign ministry expressed hope that both sides would engage constructively and reiterated its willingness to mediate for a lasting resolution.

The meeting follows six weeks of war between Iran and the United States, triggered by a joint U.S.-Israeli strike that killed Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Analysts view the Islamabad talks as a decisive moment that could determine whether the conflict ends and the Strait of Hormuz reopens.