The first round of technical talks under the new US-Iran memorandum of understanding will not take place on Friday, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said, as Iran reportedly sought a guarantee that Israel would cease its fight in Lebanon against the Hezbollah terror group.
The meeting was nixed even though the signing of the MOU on Wednesday set the clock ticking on a 60-day period during which Iran and the US are meant to hammer out a final agreement on sensitive and complex issues such as Iran’s nuclear program.
A US diplomat familiar with the talks told CNN on Friday that they were called off because Tehran is first demanding a guarantee that the ongoing conflict in Lebanon between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The deal mandates a ceasefire in Lebanon, and Iran has demanded that Israel withdraw, but Israel has vowed to keep its troops in a buffer zone in the country’s south to protect border towns from Hezbollah rocket and drone fire.
“The Iranians have asked for guarantees that hostilities in Lebanon will end, as outlined in the signed agreement,” the diplomat told CNN, saying also that “mediators are currently working to resolve the issue.”
The diplomat told CNN the negotiations were “temporarily postponed following the Israeli strikes in Lebanon,” and did not say when they would resume.
The Swiss announcement came after a White House spokesperson said overnight that US Vice President JD Vance would not depart Thursday night for the talks.
“As the vice president said at his press conference, the plans for the upcoming technical talks with Iran have not been finalized, and the US delegation has been prepared to depart at the first available opportunity,” a White House spokesperson said in a statement.
“But the logistics of these negotiations have never been simple or predictable. As of now the vice president is not departing tonight. We will let you know as soon as we have a concrete update about next steps. We look forward to beginning technical talks as soon as possible,” the statement added.
Vance had said at the press conference, where he railed against Israeli officials’ criticism of the Iran deal and US President Donald Trump, that the planned talks weren’t finalized because it was difficult to get Iranian officials out of Iran. Vance said he thought he would travel to Switzerland at some point this weekend.
Critics of the MOU signed this week have pointed to its provisions on sanctions relief for Iran, including unfreezing Iranian funds and setting up a $300 billion reconstruction fund.
Vance said Thursday that Iran would reap rewards only if it complies with terms set to be hammered out in the 60-day window that he said began on Thursday.
No comments:
Post a Comment