UNITED KINGDOM PERSPECTIVE

BBC reported soberly but precisely: Trump cancelled after the Iranian delegation had already left Pakistan, calling the planned 18-hour trip pointless. The Independent had anticipated the ambiguity ahead of time: 'Uncertainty clouds US-Iran talks,' noting JD Vance was 'absent but on standby.' It also reported Iran had laid out its demands through Pakistani mediators before Trump decided to cancel — a sequence suggesting Washington did not fully process what was being offered. For London, itself excluded from the diplomatic format, the question is whether Pakistan can sustain its mediating role. The UK has direct interests via BP and Gulf commercial ties.