On Monday, says Donald Trump, American negotiators will resume talks with Iranian officials in Islamabad. But which Iran will the Americans be talking to? The senior ranks of the Islamic Republic are deeply divided. Their disagreements surfaced, loudly, in the first set of negotiations.

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What to expect in the week ahead:

▸America’s Senate Banking Committee holds a hearing on Tuesday to confirm Kevin Warsh as chair of the Federal Reserve. Donald Trump wants lower interest rates, but his war in Iran has stoked inflation, making cuts harder to justify. Mr Warsh reinvented himself as an inflation dove to sweet-talk his way into the nomination; explaining to the president why he still cannot have the cuts he wants will require something even more saccharine.

▸The talks with Iran announced by Mr Trump come just two days before a two-week ceasefire is due to expire, on Wednesday. A first set of negotiations last weekend ended without agreement. Writing on Truth Social, Mr Trump mocked Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, a day after its reopening: it was “strange, because our BLOCKADE has already closed it”. He again threatened to destroy Iran’s power stations and bridges if no deal was reached.

▸On Thursday Warner Bros Discovery’s shareholders are expected to approve Paramount’s takeover. If it does receive their assent, the deal will create an entertainment giant; enthrone David Ellison, Paramount’s boss, as the king of Hollywood; and give sovereign-wealth funds from the Gulf an unprecedented stake in popular culture.