Peace talks between the U.S. and Iran in Switzerland faced immediate tension as Tehran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz again, prompting President Donald Trump to reiterate threats of renewed attacks. Despite conflicting accounts of the negotiations, discussions reportedly covered the Strait, Lebanon, and nuclear issues.
According to Tasnim's source, Iranians said that the start of negotiations on nuclear matters required the delivery of other parts of the memorandum of understanding (MOU), including the release of frozen assets and U.S. waivers authorizing Iranian oil exports. "The Iranians never left and are still here meeting and negotiating deep into the night," a U.S. diplomat involved in the talks told Reuters. "We've talked about the Strait, Lebanon, nuclear issues, and details of implementing the MOU, among other topics."
High-level discussions are expected to wrap up on Monday, with technical staff remaining to conduct further talks, according to a U.S. official. The agreement called for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a choke point for global energy shipments, and ending all hostilities, including in Lebanon, where Israel has continued to launch deadly strikes as Iranian ally Hezbollah fires at Israeli targets.
Iran, arguing that the U.S. had failed to meet its commitment to halt fighting in Lebanon, said on the weekend that it had again stopped maritime traffic through the Strait and that Sunday's talks would not cover substantive issues such as Iran's nuclear program.
At the talks in Switzerland, where U.S. and Iranian officials met in the presence of Qatari mediators, Vice President JD Vance played down the impact of violence in Lebanon, saying progress had been made towards ending hostilities there. "These things are always a little bit messy," he said. Back in the United States, Trump threatened to resume attacks on Iran if it did not rein in its allies.
"Iran must immediately stop their highly paid proxies in Lebanon from causing trouble," Trump wrote on social media, apparently referring to Hezbollah. "If they don't, we'll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!!!" Even as Trump was threatening Iran, Vance told reporters the U.S. president had "asked us to turn over a new leaf to transform our relationship with the people of Iran."
A U.S. diplomat late Sunday said discussions included "clarifying some of the confusing messaging from Iran on the Strait and building deconfliction mechanisms to ensure the Strait will remain fully open.
Written by: Blunderstaff | The Citizen Edition
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