Vance Meets Iranian Officials in Switzerland to Expand Interim Deal

U.S. Vice President JD Vance met Sunday with Iranian parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi at a Swiss mountainside resort near Lake Lucerne. Mediators from Pakistan and Qatar also attended the session. The talks focus on expanding the interim deal signed last week that ended the war between the United States and Iran.

Vance said the sides have an opportunity to "turn over a new leaf" with Iran. The United States seeks commitments from Iran on its nuclear program and on keeping the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial traffic. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Iran's main focus is the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that Iran will not back down from its right to enrich uranium.

A renewed ceasefire in Lebanon, reached Friday, appeared to hold despite new attacks Saturday. President Trump posted on social media Saturday that he would take action against Iran if it did not restrain Hezbollah. U.S. Central Command disputed Iran's claim that it had closed the Strait of Hormuz and said U.S. forces are monitoring traffic through the waterway.

Vance noted that millions of barrels of oil have moved through the strait in recent days.

Vance was joined by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. The two arrived earlier to begin work on technical details of the nuclear talks. The interim agreement allows Iran to sell oil freely and calls for dilution of its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

It also permits commercial vessels to pass through the Strait of Hormuz without charge for 60 days. Vance said he plans to stay in Switzerland for one or two days while Witkoff and Kushner continue the detailed negotiations.