A timeline of conflict between Iran and US since 1979

The United States and Iran have remained long-time enemies since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the hostage crisis at the US embassy in Tehran, which deeply damaged relations between the two countries.

The negotiations are being seen as an important but uncertain step, with both the United States and Iran still deeply divided over key issues. Pakistan is hosting the talks in an effort to help maintain the ceasefire and push both sides toward a possible longer-term agreement.

1979: Hostage crisis

On November 4, 1979, student activists in Iran stormed the US embassy in Tehran and took staff members hostage, demanding the extradition of the country’s former ruler, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was receiving medical treatment in the United States.

The incident took place about seven months after the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran. A total of 52 American hostages were held for 444 days.

In April 1980, the United States cut diplomatic ties with Iran and imposed restrictions on trade and travel. Around nine months later, the remaining hostages were finally released.

2002: ‘Axis of evil’ 

On April 30, 1995, US President Bill Clinton announced a complete ban on trade and investment with Iran, accusing it of supporting terrorism. The United States said Iran was backing regional militant groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Foreign companies investing in Iran’s oil and gas sector were also targeted under these restrictions.

On January 29, 2002, US President George W. Bush described Iran, Iraq, and North Korea as part of an “axis of evil” that he said supported terrorism.

Later, in April 2019, the United States designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the ideological branch of its military, as a “terrorist organization.”

2018: US walks out of nuclear deal

In the early 2000s, reports about undeclared nuclear sites in Iran raised concerns that the country might be trying to develop nuclear weapons, which Iran has consistently denied.

A 2011 report by the International Atomic Energy Agency stated that based on what it called “broadly credible” intelligence, Iran had carried out activities related to developing a nuclear explosive device until at least 2003.

In 2005, then President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ended a suspension on uranium enrichment, while Iran continued to insist that its nuclear programme was only for peaceful and civilian use.

About ten years later, an agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme was reached in Vienna between Iran and six major powers — China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The deal offered Iran relief from heavy economic sanctions in exchange for guarantees that it would not build a nuclear weapon, and it was later approved by the United Nations.

In 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement and reimposed sanctions on Iran and companies linked to it. A year later, Iran began stepping back from some of its commitments under the deal.

Efforts to revive the agreement failed, and sanctions were reimposed on September 28, 2025. The deal officially expired in October.

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2020: Top general killed

On January 3, 2020, the US kills top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad.

Trump says Soleimani had been planning an “imminent” attack on US diplomats and forces in Iraq.

Iran retaliates with missile strikes on bases in Iraq hosting American forces.

2025: Nuclear sites bombed

During the 12-day war between Israel and Iran, the US strikes three major Iranian nuclear sites on June 21, 2025.

Trump says the sites have been “obliterated”, but the true extent of the damage is not known.

February 2026: Khamenei killed 

Donald Trump threatened to strike Iran following its violent crackdown on a large protest movement that began in late December 2025, although his focus soon shifted to Iran’s nuclear programme. He then deployed a major US naval force to the region.

Indirect talks between the two sides resumed in early February 2026 with mediation from Oman. On February 28, the United States and Israel carried out coordinated strikes that reportedly killed Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and targeted the country’s military and nuclear facilities.

In response, Iran vowed revenge and launched multiple missile attacks on Gulf countries hosting US forces. It also effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial route through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes.

April 2026: high-level talks

The United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire at the start of April after more than a month of war that caused thousands of deaths, displacement, and serious damage to the global economy.

Senior delegations from both sides are scheduled to meet on Saturday in Islamabad, which helped arrange the ceasefire. The US team will be led by Vice President JD Vance, while Iran’s delegation will be headed by parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.

Both sides still have deep mistrust and disagreements over key issues. The ceasefire is due to end on April 22 unless an agreement is reached during the talks.