White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt took to Fox News and the White House briefing room Friday to confirm what diplomats and analysts had been watching closely: a second round of direct U.S.–Iran talks is set for Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday — and this time, it was Tehran that asked for the meeting.

Leavitt’s appearances on Fox News’ America Reports and at a White House press gaggle were concise and carefully worded, projecting cautious optimism without overcommitting to a timeline or outcome. The dominant message was one of American strength holding the door open for a deal — on U.S. terms, not Iranian ones.

The most significant diplomatic signal embedded in Leavitt’s remarks was the sequence of events: the Iranians reached out. They requested the in-person conversation. The United States responded by dispatching its envoys. For an administration that has spent weeks pounding Iran economically and militarily, the optics of that sequence matter enormously.

Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and presidential advisor Jared Kushner are departing Saturday morning for Pakistan, where Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived the previous day. The talks will be facilitated by Pakistani intermediaries — a role Islamabad has played throughout the current conflict and one Leavitt again praised warmly.

When pressed on whether Iran had submitted any formal proposal, Leavitt was measured but notably positive — a shift in tone from earlier in the month when the administration described Tehran’s first submission as “fundamentally unserious” and literally “thrown in the garbage.”

She declined to detail any specific Iranian proposals or the exact format of the Saturday meeting beyond “direct talks” — a phrase that itself carries weight given how long U.S. and Iranian officials have avoided sitting in the same room.

Vice President JD Vance, who led the first round of talks in Islamabad earlier this month, will remain in Washington for the initial phase of Round 2 — but Leavitt made clear he is anything but sidelined.

Leavitt’s appearances came against a backdrop that has not softened: the naval blockade of Iranian ports remains fully in force, at least 28 vessels have been turned back since it began, and the USS George H.W. Bush carrier strike group continues its advance toward the Persian Gulf. Iran is losing an estimated $500 million per day in trade disruptions, and its military and police forces are reportedly dealing with unpaid wages.

The administration’s posture — maximum pressure maintained, door open, timelines flexible and held at the president’s discretion — is consistent with what Trump has executed throughout the conflict. No new deadlines were announced Friday, a deliberate choice that keeps Iran guessing while preventing the kind of artificial clocks that can force premature compromises or allow Iran to run out the clock.

Whether Saturday’s meeting in Islamabad produces a breakthrough remains to be seen. But the fact that Tehran asked for it — and that Washington sent two of Trump’s most trusted deal-makers — signals that both sides understand the economic and military scoreboard well enough to keep talking.