By Aamer Madhani, Jamey Keaten and Seung Min Kim
Associated Press
June 21, 2026 - 11:18 pm
OBBUERGEN, Switzerland— Negotiators from the U.S. and Iran were acceptable to prosecute successful a 2nd time of talks Monday to solidify a imperishable extremity to the warfare betwixt the countries, aft a archetypal time of mediation began with a rocky start.
Mediators Qatar and Pakistan hailed what they called “encouraging progress” made during the talks arsenic Iran and the United States agreed to make a “de-confliction cell” to code the warring successful Lebanon. A elder U.S. diplomat claimed advancement connected aggregate fronts, including the constitution of “mechanisms” to guarantee the Strait of Hormuz, a captious waterway for planetary vigor shipments, remains unfastened and that a ceasefire successful confederate Lebanon holds.
Yet the archetypal afloat time of talks betwixt the U.S. and Iran, who were accompanied by Qatari and Pakistani officials, was jolted by blistering statements from U.S. President Donald Trump, who from thousands of miles distant from the Swiss negotiating venue astatine a mountainside edifice adjacent Lake Lucerne was firing disconnected comments that offended the Iranians.
Iranian authorities media said talks had paused aft the “publication of an insulting connection by the U.S. President.” The Iranian delegation past met with Qatari mediators and near the negotiating site, authorities media said. The elder U.S. diplomat, who spoke connected information of anonymity to little journalists connected the ongoing talks, said precocious Sunday that the Iranians remained connected tract and the negotiations were on.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had vowed to “never backmost down from the close to enrich uranium,” according to authorities media, and Trump aboriginal told Fox News successful a telephone interrogation that Pezeshkian should ticker what helium says and besides threatened to instrumentality implicit Iran, according to 1 of the quality channel’s correspondents.
Trump besides continued to contented warnings against Iran connected societal media, posting arsenic negotiators worked: “Iran indispensable instantly halt their highly paid PROXIES successful Lebanon from causing trouble. If they don’t, we’ll deed Iran precise hard again, conscionable similar we did past week, lone harder!!!”
The main negotiators for the U.S. see JD Vance, the vice president; peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of the president. Iran is represented by Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Iran’s parliamentary speaker, and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
It’s unclear erstwhile Vance volition depart Switzerland, though helium told Fox News successful an interrogation Saturday that helium anticipates staying lone a “day oregon two.” Kushner and Witkoff are handling overmuch of the method details connected behalf of the U.S. delegation.
In a associated statement, Pakistan and Qatar said the high-level talks had ended and that method negotiations would proceed successful Switzerland for the remainder of the week. The connection said the sides had agreed to found a “communication line” to guarantee harmless transition of ships successful the Strait of Hormuz, arsenic good arsenic a mechanics to bring astir an extremity to the warring betwixt Israel and the Iranian-backed militant radical Hezbollah successful Lebanon.
The U.S. offered nary contiguous comment, portion Iran praised the meditators’ work.
Araghchi wrote connected X that Pakistani and Qatari mediators delivered “major advancement to extremity the Lebanon War.” He added that the archetypal “real test” of negotiations would beryllium whether the mechanics succeeded successful halting the warring betwixt Israel and Hezbollah.
The elder U.S. diplomat said among the issues discussed was Iran’s messaging arsenic it related to the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran’s subject said it closed Saturday successful effect to continued warring successful Lebanon. U.S. Central Command has disputed that Iran closed the strait again.
The interim woody to extremity the warring successful Iran, signed past week by the leaders of the U.S. and Iran, outlines a 60-day play for negotiators to settee the aboriginal of Tehran’s atomic programme amid concerns that it wants to usage it for subject purposes, a assertion Iran denies. The destiny of frozen Iranian assets, among different thorny issues, are besides connected the agenda.
Though the talks volition encompass a immense array of analyzable matters, Iran archetypal wants to absorption connected addressing the warring successful Lebanon.
Saturday’s renewed ceasefire successful Lebanon appeared to beryllium holding, and Israel’s subject said it would assistance question restrictions for residents adjacent the Israel-Lebanon borderline connected Monday morning. Neither Israel nor Hezbollah is simply a signatory to the U.S.-Iran deal.
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Kim reported from Washington.
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