The Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, described it as “historic” the meeting that began in Switzerland this Sunday (21) for negotiations with Iran, with the aim of finalizing the memorandum of understanding reached this week, aimed at putting an end to the war in the Middle East. “This is a historic meeting”, he reinforced, mentioning that “great advances have been achieved in the last few hours”.
“What does the president [Donald Trump] asked us to do is to turn the page and transform our relationship with the Iranian people“, stated JD Vance at the start of direct negotiations between the two countries, with mediation from Qatar and Pakistan, at a resort in Bürgenstock, in the Swiss Alps.
“If its leaders are willing to renounce its role as a factor in regional instability, if they are willing to permanently abandon any ambition to possess a nuclear weapon, the United States is willing to fundamentally transform its relationship” with Iran, he added.
As Negotiations seek to end the war in the Middle Easttriggered by the bombings of Israel and the United States against Iran on February 28, and are centered on the war in Lebanon and the Iranian nuclear program.
American Vice President JD Vance landed early this Sunday morning at the Emmen air base, near Lucerne, in central Switzerland, according to his spokesman. The negotiations were scheduled at a luxury hotel in Bürgenstock, a mountain overlooking Lake Lucerne.
The Iranian delegation arrived on Saturday and, according to Iranian state television, is made up of the main negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (also president of Parliament), the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abbas Araghchi, and the president of the Central Bank, Abdolnaser Hemmati.
The Pakistani delegation, which acts as mediator, arrived this Sunday and includes Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Commander Asim Munir.
Meeting in Switzerland
The United States and Iran resumed this Sunday (21), in Switzerland, negotiations to end the war in the Middle East, despite the Iranian announcement of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The framework agreement signed by Tehran and Washington last Wednesday establishes a period of 60 days, renewable, for discussionswhich will address, among other topics, the Iranian nuclear program.
However, Since signing, obstacles have been piling up. Iran demands that negotiations include a ceasefire in Lebanon between Israel and the pro-Iranian group Hezbollah. On Saturday, given the continuation of Israeli bombings, the Iran announced in reprisal the closure of the Strait of Hormuza strategic gateway for global hydrocarbon trade.
The reopening of the strait is one of the key points of the protocol agreement between the United States and Iran.
At the beginning of the war, Iran had blocked this strategic maritime route, through which around 20% of the world’s hydrocarbons used to transit, which caused an increase in oil prices.
Following Iran’s announcement of its new closure, the American Middle East Command (Centcom) indicated that its forces remained “vigilant”. According to Centcom, 55 merchant ships crossed the strait safely on Saturday.
Hezbollah x Israel
Hezbollah dragged Lebanon into the Middle East war with rocket launches against Israel to avenge the death of Iranian supreme leadermurdered in the American-Israeli attacks against Tehran that triggered the war, on February 28.
Since then, the Israeli operations in Lebanon caused 4,057 deathsaccording to the latest report from the Ministry of Health. Before his departure for Switzerland, the vice-president of the United States assured that, despite everything, the situation “is improving”.
*With information from AFP
