New Delhi, Apr 12: Negotiations between the United States and Iran in Islamabad ended without agreement, with Iranian officials insisting Washington failed to earn Tehran’s trust.

Iranian Parliament speaker Mohammad BagherGhalibaf, who led Tehran’s delegation, struck a firm tone after the talks, saying it was now up to the US “to decide whether it can earn our trust or not”.

In a post on X, Ghalibaf said Iran had entered the negotiations with “good faith and will” but remained deeply sceptical.

“Due to our experiences of two previous wars, we have no trust in the opposing side,” he wrote, adding that although Tehran “raised forward-looking initiatives”, the US “ultimately failed to gain the trust of the Iranian delegation in this round of negotiations”.

He said that Iran would continue to consolidate what he called the gains of its recent conflict.

“We will not for a moment cease our efforts to consolidate the achievements of the forty days of Iran’s national defence,” he said, describing the talks as “intense” and thanking Pakistan for facilitating them.

A central sticking point, according to the BBC, was the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery through which roughly a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies typically pass.

Iranian officials signalled that control over the strait remains a non-negotiable issue.

Deputy parliament speaker Haji Babaei, quoted by Iranian media, said the waterway is “completely in Iran’s hands” and that “its tolls must be paid in rials”, underlining Tehran’s assertion of sovereignty.

The warning was echoed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which said “any attempt by military vessels to pass through the Strait of Hormuz will be dealt with severely,” BBC reported.

This contrasts sharply with the US position.

US Vice President J D Vance said Washington’s “red lines” had been clearly communicated, but acknowledged, “They have not chosen to accept our terms.”

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump insisted the strait would “soon be open”, while US Central Command said American naval destroyers had transited the waterway as part of efforts to clear sea mines, claims Iran has denied.

BBC reporting suggests the failure to reach a deal was not unexpected.

Washington is believed to have approached the talks assuming Iran’s recent military setbacks would force quicker concessions.

Tehran, however, entered negotiations convinced it retained leverage, particularly through its strategic position over the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson EsmailBaghaei reinforced that view, describing the negotiations as taking place in “an atmosphere filled with mistrust, suspicion and doubt” after more than 40 days of what he called an “imposed war”.

He also cautioned against expecting rapid breakthroughs.

“We should not have expected from the start that we could reach an agreement in a single session. I don’t think anyone had such expectations,” Baghaei said adding that “diplomacy never ends”.

The talks themselves were preceded by uncertainty over whether they would even take place.

Security in Islamabad was tightened as delegations arrived, first the Iranian team overnight, welcomed by Pakistani officials, followed by the US delegation led by Vance.

Both sides initially held separate meetings with Pakistani leaders, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who expressed hope that negotiators would “engage constructively”.

Face-to-face discussions then continued through the night with little information released publicly.

By early Sunday, Iranian officials described the talks as “intensive” and urged Washington to avoid “excessive demands and unlawful request”.

While both delegations have now left Pakistan without an agreement, Iranian officials have framed the outcome less as a failure and more as part of a longer diplomatic process.

The BBC reported that previous breakthroughs between Tehran and Washington like the nuclear deal a decade ago, took months of negotiations marked by repeated breakdowns.

For now, however, the gap remains wide.

Iran insists it negotiated from a position of resilience and strategic leverage, while the US maintains Tehran must accept its terms, leaving the future of both the talks and the fragile ceasefire uncertain.