US Vice President JD Vance set off to the Pakistani capital of Islamabad on Friday to lead mediated talks with Iran amid a shaky ceasefire.
Vance said he believed negotiations were going to be "positive", but warned Iran not "to play" the United States, or talks could break down.
"As the President of the United States said, if the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we’re certainly willing to extend the open hand", he told reporters as he prepared to depart from the US.
"If they’re going to try to play us, then they’re going to find that the negotiating team is not that receptive. So we’re going to try to have a positive negotiation."
While he shared an optimistic outlook with reporters, his warning cast a dark cloud on an already tenuous and temporary ceasefire, which already appears to be on the precipice of collapsing.
The Vice President will be joined by Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Meanwhile, the final and most difficult part of the Artemis II voyage will take place tonight, with the crew navigating the dangers of re-entering the atmosphere before they splash down back on Earth.
After 10 days, the four crew members will return from their journey, which has seen them travel the furthest distance from Earth any human ever has before.
Their journey is part of Nasa’s long-term plan to return humans to the surface of the Moon – part of its broader mission to put feet on the ground of Mars.
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