U.S. Push To Get Iran Talks Started Hits An Early Bump. Vance Stays At Home, For Now

ZURICH (AP) — America’s effort to get started quickly Risky talks with Iran A blockage occurred on Friday, just a few days after the incident signing an agreement opens a two-month window for negotiations Tehran’s nuclear program and returning oil traffic Strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels

Iranian officials did not travel to Switzerland as planned and insisted: Israeli attacks Work on Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon must be halted before talks can take place, according to three regional officials and a person familiar with the matter. They were not authorized to publicly discuss the ongoing mediation to reschedule talks and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The situation was fluid, with Israel and Hezbollah agreeing to renew a ceasefire on Friday, according to a US official and regional officials. Time will tell whether this will help US-Iran talks get back on track.

In Washington, President Donald Trump once again lashed out amid intensifying fighting and stalled nuclear talks in Lebanon.

“We didn’t meet out of desperation, Iran did,” Trump said in a social media post on Friday. “THEY ARE DONE! We will play for 60 days. They don’t get paid, not even a dime!”

Trump’s vice president JDVance, He was preparing to take an overnight flight to meet his Iranian colleagues at a mountainside resort in little Switzerland Obbürgen village and start technical discussions.

Vance’s staff and a small group of journalists had gathered at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington in anticipation of the trip. Dozens of White House officials, advanced staff and more media were already in Switzerland.

The trip was then suddenly and temporarily cancelled.

In the statement made by the White House, it was stated that Vance, whom Trump appointed to lead the negotiations, decided to postpone his trip. There was no mention of the increasing violence in Lebanon.

“The logistics of these negotiations have never been simple or predictable,” he said in the statement.

But the Iranians made clear to the White House that they were hesitant to begin negotiations with Vance because of Israel’s action in Lebanon, according to officials.

clashes intensified Officials said that at least 18 people were killed in Israeli air strikes, while four Israeli soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon.

Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu He said on Thursday that the Israeli army would remain in a “security zone” in southern Lebanon “as long as Israel’s security needs require it.”

Israel and Hezbollah are not parties to the US-Iran agreement.

Iran insists on Israeli withdrawal from large area South Lebanon occupies, but the text of the interim agreement does not explicitly require this and only ensures the “territorial integrity” of Lebanon.

Hours before postponing his trip, Vance offered some clues about the status of the exchange when he told reporters at a White House briefing that he wasn’t sure if the talks would happen this weekend.

“We think those technical negotiations will begin this weekend,” Vance said. “That’s still the plan. But that could change.”

Shortly after Vance spoke to reporters, Iran’s supreme leader said: Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, He approved direct negotiations with the United States. His brief statement, read by state media, appeared to signal to the Islamic Republic’s leadership that it could move forward with the first round of talks.

“It is clear that future face-to-face talks will not mean accepting the enemy’s view,” Khamenei said.

The message appeared to provide maneuverability for Khamenei, who was seriously injured in the Feb. 28 U.S. strike that killed his father. Hardliners in the Iranian government, including Khamenei’s father, have long opposed direct talks with the White House, especially after Trump withdrew from the White House during his first term. 2015 nuclear agreement It was negotiated by Democratic President Barack Obama’s administration.

Vance was initially expected to travel to Switzerland to sign the agreement in a formal ceremony. In its place, Trump signed the document During a lavish dinner with the French President at the Palace of Versailles on Wednesday Emmanuel Macron. Iranian president, Massoud Pezeshkian, separately signed the agreement.

Iran is said to be stockpiling highly enriched uraniumIt is believed to be buried under rubble left by US military strikes last year. Tehran’s major nuclear facilities At the very least, it should be diluted under international control.

It also says Iran will not procure or develop nuclear weapons; A commitment Tehran has made before. Other commitments need to be fulfilled.

The Iranians will enter negotiations with some confidence after effectively closing the strait. causing global economic repercussions, Rosemary Kelanic, Defense Priorities Middle East Program Director in Washington, said:

He said the United States is now “essentially trying to negotiate a way back to the pre-war status quo.”

Neil Quilliam, an associate researcher at the Chatham House think tank’s Middle East and North Africa Program, said he felt the “vibrant” Iranian leadership had the upper hand. Iran’s supreme leader’s approval of the talks “sends a very strong signal domestically: ‘We are now on equal footing with the United States.'”

“Trump went from calling for regime change on February 28 to now they’re going to sit down directly with us and talk about these big issues,” Quilliam said about Iranians’ thinking. “So this film is aimed more at domestic audiences and tells them: ‘We are absolutely in control of this. There can be no protest, there can be no revolution: We are a new regime and we are staying put.'”

The course of the negotiations could have huge consequences for Vance, one of the 2028 presidential candidates. Consequences for political fate.

Vance’s skepticism about foreign wars It was a core part of his political identity during his political rise, including his election as a U.S. senator. He now sees himself as the chief proponent of negotiating the end game of his conflict with Trump, which Democrats largely consider a foolish gamble. Some hawkish Republicans are upset that Trump is behind a deal that could fit billions of dollars into Iran’s coffers.

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said some aspects of the agreement were “completely contrary” to Trump’s goals.

Trump has harshly criticized Obama for the 2015 nuclear deal, which he said failed to stop Tehran’s weapons advance and funneled billions of dollars to the Islamic Republic. The Republican president withdrew from the US agreement in 2018.

Trump has pushed back against comparisons to the earlier deal, saying he “negotiated strongly” after a major military offensive and arguing that Obama paid off the Iranians and did not seek consent.

Wicker, R-Miss., was particularly concerned about the $300 billion fund for Iran’s reconstruction and economic development mentioned in the 14-point agreement. Trump and Vance said no US taxpayer money would go to such a fund and that it would not happen without concessions and reforms from Tehran.