The United States and Iran on Sunday held first round of technical-level talks in Switzerland, with the session suspended after 80 minutes of intense negotiations to allow the delegations of the both countries to conduct “internal consultations”, reported Iranian state media.
According to Iran’s Fars news agency, the US delegation, led by Vice President JD Vance, told Iranian officials that Washington is ready to “fundamentally transform” its relations with Tehran as conveyed US President Donald Trump’s message, encouraging both countries to turn a “new leaf” in their diplomatic engagement.
However, the Iranian media claimed that the discussions on the first day didn’t feature Iran’s nuclear programme.
“Never before has the Iranian and American leadership met at such a high level. We’ve already made great progress over just the last few hours, and I expect that we will make additional progress in the hours to come,” Vance reportedly remarked at the meeting.
He, however, cautioned that while these discussions are a vital starting point, they are unlikely to yield an immediate resolution.
Emphasising the complexities of the diplomatic process, he noted, “Peace is never easy. Peace always requires a little bit of work. It always requires a little bit of give and take.”
Both countries have signed an interim agreement that granted them 60-day of peace to finalise an agreement to end the war that started on February 28 with US and Israeli attacks on Iran.
Trump warns Iran to stop Hezbollah in Lebanon or face US attacks
President Donald Trump on Sunday warned Tehran to “immediately stop their highly paid proxies in Lebanon”, or the US will “hit Iran very hard again” amid talks in Switzerland aimed at defusing volatility across the region.
The escalatory warning was issued via the President’s social media platform, Truth Social, marking one of the most aggressive posturing manoeuvres from Washington since the commencement of the alpine diplomatic track.
“Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble. If they don’t, we’ll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!!!” Trump posted.
(With inputs from agencies)