Vance travels to Switzerland for nuclear talks with Iran
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Vice President J.D. Vance speaks to reporters from Joint Base Andrews, in Maryland before hearing to Switzerland for negotiations with Iran. Photo by Elizabeth Frantz/Pool/Getty Images
Vice President Vance traveled to Switzerland on Saturday ahead of a first round of negotiations with Iran that's expected on Sunday at the Burgenstock ski resort.
Why it matters: This will be the first round of direct talks between the U.S. and Iran since the Islamabad summit last April. It's supposed to launch 60 days of nuclear negotiations.
- The talks are expected to take place despite Iran claiming on Saturday that it was shutting down the Strait of Hormuz in response to Israeli ceasefire violations in Lebanon. Given that backdrop, things could break down at any time,
- "I think we're going to hopefully make progress on the nuclear issue, make progress on the Lebanon ceasefire issue. Those are the two big things that I think we're to be focused on," Vance told reporters on Saturday before leaving Washington.
Driving the news: White House envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Switzerland on Saturday morning.
- Later on Saturday, an Iranian delegation headed by Speaker of Parliament Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in the country.
- The prime ministers of Pakistan and Qatar and Pakistan's top general are in Switzerland to serve as mediators. The director of the International Atomic Energy Agency will also participate.
- Vance said Saturday that the negotiations will last "a couple days" and he will stay "for a day or two."
- The VP said the first round is aimed at "getting the actual structure and negotiation in place."
- He noted that there will also be working-level talks by technical experts that could continue in Switzerland after the first round of high-level talks concludes.
Between the lines: The U.S. would like the first round of talks to end with an Iranian invitation for UN inspectors to visit its nuclear sites, which were bombed by the U.S. and Israel, two regional sources with direct knowledge said. The last such visit took place before the previous war in June, 2025.
- In return, the U.S. is willing to give Iran access to some of its frozen funds — starting with a $6 billion account in Qatar.
- The Iranians would be able to use those funds to buy humanitarian goods, the sources said.
What to watch: On Saturday, ahead of the talks, Israel and Hezbollah announced they were re-committed to the ceasefire. Such statements have tended to be very short-lived. A similar ceasefire broke down within hours on Friday.
- Vance acknowledged Lebanon could derail the negotiations, but said Secretary of State Marco Rubio is handling de-escalation efforts.
- "Despite the headlines, things are actually getting better there, and things are slowing down a little bit. It's going to be something we're just going to have to continuously manage to ensure that Israel and Lebanon are both safe and secure," Vance said.
