US delegation led by Vice President JD Vance met directly with Iranian officials in Pakistan on Saturday — a significant moment for two countries that have typically held high-level talks through intermediaries, a CNN report said.

This is the first official face-to-face, high-level direct talks between the United States and Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Officials have exchanged written outlines of key issues and the first phase of negotiations has concluded, according to Iranian media.

Pakistan's Prime Minister  Shehbaz Sharif said he hopes negotiators will "engage constructively".

Hours earlier, the Iranian delegation led by Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi also met with Sharif to determine the timing and manner of possible negotiations, according to local media.

Iranian state TV said Tehran's delegation had set out its red lines to Sharif, adding that these concerned the Strait of Hormuz, the release of Iran's blocked assets, the payment of war reparations, and a ceasefire to be enforced across the region.

"We will ​negotiate with our finger on the trigger," Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said on state TV. "While we are open to talks, we are also fully aware of the lack of trust; therefore, Iran's diplomatic team is ​entering this process with maximum caution."

Earlier, a senior Iranian source told Reuters the US had agreed to release frozen assets held in Qatar and other foreign banks, but a US official ⁠swiftly denied the claim.

The Iranian source welcomed the alleged move as a sign of "seriousness" in the talks, in which Washington is pressing Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping.

Qatar's Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond ​to a request for comment on the assertion about frozen assets.

Iran is also demanding a ceasefire in Lebanon, where Israeli attacks on Iran-backed Hezbollah militants have killed nearly 2,000 people since the start of fighting in March.

Israel and the US have ​said the Lebanon campaign is not part of the Iran-US ceasefire.

As direct talks between US and Iran take place in Islamabad with Pakistan, Israel says it is continuing strikes on targets in Lebanon, reported BBC.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it has struck more than 200 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon in the past 24 hours.

In a statement, it says its air force is carrying out further attacks and supporting ground forces operating in southern Lebanon. The IDF also says it is targeting launchers to prevent attacks on Israel.

Trump posted on social media on Friday that the only reason the Iranians were alive was to negotiate a deal.

"The Iranians don't seem to realize they have no cards, other than a short term extortion of the World by using International Waterways. The only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!" he said.

Vance, speaking as he headed to Pakistan, said he expected a positive outcome but added: "If they're going to try to play us, then they're going to find the negotiating team ​is not that receptive."