JD Vance arrives in Switzerland to join Kushner and Witkoff for new round of Iran negotiations
Vice President JD Vance landed in Switzerland early Sunday to help launch a new round of negotiations with Iran, as the Trump administration pushes for a lasting agreement following a recently signed ceasefire.
Vance arrived shortly before 6 a.m. local time and is expected to join White House envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, for the talks.
Swiss officials confirmed Saturday that the Iranian delegation had arrived and was traveling to Bürgenstock, where the discussions are expected to take place.
The talks were initially scheduled for Friday, but Switzerland’s foreign ministry announced that planned negotiations involving the U.S., Iran, Qatar and Pakistan had been postponed.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is also expected to participate in the talks, according to Axios.
The negotiations come days after Trump signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Iran following the G7 summit at the Palace of Versailles. The agreement established a 60-day ceasefire and outlined a framework for broader negotiations between the two countries aimed at ending the conflict.
In a Truth Social post Saturday, Trump warned that the United States could impose tolls in the Strait of Hormuz if negotiations fail to produce a lasting agreement before the ceasefire expires.
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Before departing from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, Vance said a successful trip would involve establishing the framework for future negotiations.
“I think number one, just getting things set up in the right way and getting the actual structure of the negotiations in place,” he said.
“The way that we’re going to do this, we’re going to have a principal level of political leadership at the top,” he continued. “And then obviously the technical team is going to stay on the ground.”
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Vance said he expected to remain in Switzerland for a day or two.
The vice president also previewed some of the issues expected to be discussed during the negotiations.
“I think we’re hopefully making progress on the nuclear issue, make progress on the Lebanon ceasefire issue,” he said.
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“Those are the two big things that I think we’re going to be focused on,” he continued. “I’m sure the Iranians are going to have issues they’d like to discuss as well.”
Vance said conditions in Lebanon had improved despite renewed clashes between Israel and Hezbollah.
“Despite the headlines, things are actually getting better there,” he said, while acknowledging that sporadic violence remains a challenge in the region.
The vice president said the goal is to prevent further escalation and preserve the ceasefire.
“The big problem is that somebody will shoot and then somebody will respond,” Vance said. “You’ve just got to stop the shooting for long enough to get the ceasefire to hold.”
Pakistan also announced that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir would participate in technical-level discussions in Switzerland.
Fox News Digital’s Brittany Miller contributed to this report.
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