U.S. Vice President JD Vance has departed for Switzerland for a round of talks with the Iranian delegation, a report says. The main discussion topics are progress on the nuclear issue and advancing a ceasefire in Lebanon.
Vice President JD Vance departed Washington for Switzerland on Saturday afternoon, reversing a White House cancellation the previous evening, according to a single-source report. The trip resumption came hours after Vance himself had said talks with Iran were 'progressing well' and that he would travel 'in the coming days.' By Saturday evening, an Iranian delegation had been named and U.S. envoys Witkoff and Kushner were already on the ground. The reported agenda for the talks at the Bürgenstock resort focuses on the nuclear issue and advancing a ceasefire in Lebanon. No official confirmation of Vance's arrival in Switzerland has been issued yet.
As The Zioneer reported, the trip had gone through several reversals. On Friday morning, the White House cited 'logistics' for a delay, with no new date set. By Friday evening, Iran had blamed ongoing Israeli strikes in Lebanon for suspending its own delegation’s travel. Earlier Saturday, however, Iran named its full delegation and designated its negotiating team 'Minab 168,' led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and including Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. By Saturday afternoon, envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had landed in Switzerland, and Iran's foreign minister was expected to arrive as well.
The developments follow Iran's condition, as reported by The Zioneer earlier Saturday, linking nuclear talks to a Lebanon ceasefire. The IAEA's Rafael Grossi had been expected to join the talks since Thursday. The negotiations aim to formalize elements of the 'Islamabad Agreement' framework, which Vance had previously confirmed he would attend.
The precise timing of Vance's arrival in Switzerland and the start of face-to-face talks remain unconfirmed, pending official confirmation from the White House or the Swiss hosts.
9 developments
- DevelopingIran names full delegation for Friday talks in Switzerland with Vance leading US team
- StrongIran confirms it will attend Switzerland talks, demands US enforce halt to Israeli Lebanon strikes
- DevelopingSwiss ministry: delegations from Iran, US, Qatar, Pakistan to meet Friday at Bürgenstock for preliminary talks on deal implementation
- StrongIran names parliament speaker Qalibaf to lead delegation for Friday MOU signing in Switzerland
Source and signal
- Internal intake