The U.S. team is led by Vice President JD Vance and includes Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff. The Iranian negotiators are led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Pakistan and Qatar are mediators.
On the eve of talks, Tehran said it closed the Strait of Hormuz again over Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Lebanon against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorist group. The interim deal is meant to stop fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon. Iran has said talks must first address that issue.
The U.S. says shipping traffic on the crucial waterway continues, and Trump has threatened to impose American tolls in the strait if a final deal with Iran isn’t reached in 60 days. Other issues include unfreezing billions of dollars in Iranian assets and addressing the heart of tensions: Iran's nuclear program.
Negotiators hoping to reach a deal to end the war in Iran are anticipating working through the night, according to a senior U.S. diplomat engaged in the talks.
The diplomat, who insisted on anonymity to detail private discussions, said the Iranians remained in the talks contrary to some reports, and said that much of the discussions have included clarifying what Iran meant by some of its recent statements about the Strait of Hormuz. The negotiators also discussed various “mechanisms” to ensure the strait remains open and that a ceasefire in southern Lebanon is enforced.
Trump makes a threat and Iran's lead negotiator responds
Trump in a telephone interview with Fox News has said that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had “better watch his mouth.” The broadcaster also quoted Trump as saying Pezeshkian had “better shape up or we’ll take over the rest of the country.”
Not long after that, Iran's lead negotiator Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf posted on X that “We do not regard American threats as amounting to anything. They would do better to be careful about their statements.”
Pezeshkian earlier Sunday said that “what is certain is that we will never back down from the right to enrich uranium, and the other side is also forced to accept it,” according to state media.
