Talks between the United States and Iran are entering a new phase to reach a definitive peace agreement after being signed by both parties this week. A four-party meeting between Iran, the United States, and mediators Qatar and Pakistan will be held this Sunday afternoon in the mountain resort of Bürgenstock in central Switzerland, the spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry told Iranian state media.
Esmaeil Baghaei stated earlier in the day and added that the meeting in Switzerland represents a “monitoring of the application” of the memorandum already signed and that a deadline of 60 days is set to address the thorniest issues, such as the Iranian nuclear program.
The vice president of the United States, JD Vance, has already arrived in Switzerland, after suspending his trip last Friday, when this round of negotiations was scheduled to begin. The Iranian Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, is also already in the Alpine country, as well as the Pakistani Chief of Staff, Asim Munir, as well as a delegation from Qatar, to mediate the dialogue. The US special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, advanced their trip and have been in Switzerland since Saturday. Also the Iranian delegation, whose members include the President of Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abbas Araghchi.
The crisis in Lebanon is planned over the meeting, where Israel killed at least 25 people in bombings on Saturday, despite the fact that the agreement between the United States and Iran specifies that the war will stop on all fronts and Lebanese “territorial integrity” will be respected. The Israeli army occupies the south of the country. Given the persistence of the attacks, in an attempt to pressure for the cessation of the offensive. The United States denied blocking the passage, although this Sunday Iran reiterated that it remains closed and that the Revolutionary Guard has not granted permission to any ship to transit the corridor, according to the Fars news agency, which quotes a military source.
Vance, in an interview with Fox News before leaving for Switzerland, said he was confident the ceasefire would hold and had seen no indication that the Strait of Hormuz was closed. Negotiators are likely to have “a couple of days of talks,” Vance told reporters before boarding a plane at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. “I hope that we can make progress on the nuclear issue and on the issue of the ceasefire in Lebanon,” he said.
The cessation of fighting in Lebanon was one of the conditions for starting talks. Israel claimed on Saturday that it was responding to Hezbollah attacks, while the Iran-backed group declared it would not allow Israel “freedom of movement” in Lebanon.
Israel, excluded from the talks but obligated as a partner of the United States, has declared that it will maintain its forces in the Lebanese territory it occupies. The Israeli network Channel 12 reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz gave instructions to the army on Saturday night not to open fire in Lebanon, but that they would not withdraw from occupied areas. The neighboring country has thus experienced the first quiet night in a long time.
