US Vice President JD Vance on Monday referred to the ongoing peace talks in Switzerland as a “very, very good day” of negotiations between America and Iran and praised Tehran for creating a “good foundation for a successful final deal” to end the conflict in West Asia.
The Vice President’s comments came hours after he and Iran’s top negotiator and parliamentary speaker, Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, wrapped the initial round of talks that was centred around ending the war between Washington and Tehran permanently.
Laying the foundation for a final agreement
“The final deal is the house. We set the foundation. We haven’t built the house, but we’ve laid a successful foundation to get to a good place for the American people,” Vance told reporters at the Bürgenstock resort in Obbuergen.
Collaborative diplomacy and proposals on frozen assets
The mediation efforts, led by Pakistan and Qatar in Switzerland, saw rocky moments on Sunday, but the US and Iran also agreed on some points during the discussion.
Vance suggested during his address that President Donald Trump’s administration could agree to unfreeze Iranian assets for purchases of US wheat, corn and soy, AP reported.
Vance elaborated that the idea of unfreezing Iranian assets for the purchase of US soy was brought up by one of the lead negotiators, Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President Trump.
Qatari oversight and agricultural trade framework
The Vice President said Qatar would have approval to oversee the process; however, he added that the money that would be accessible to Tehran after sanctions are lifted “would actually go to buy American soy, American corn and American wheat for the benefit of the Iranian people.”
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Joint mediation efforts and the Strait of Hormuz
Pakistan and Qatar, in a joint statement, said the high-level engagement in Switzerland has ended, but technical negotiations would continue this week.
The mediators hailed the developments made during the talks, as a US diplomat said progress was made on multiple fronts, including the establishment of “mechanisms” to ensure the Strait of Hormuz remains open.
Addressing the fragile security situation in Lebanon
Vance was also asked about the status of negotiations between Israel and Hezbollah, as the fighting in Lebanon has continued to risk the ongoing fragile ceasefire in the West Asia region.
“This is a work in progress, but what we’ve done is actually set up the operation so that we can ensure it doesn’t spiral out of control in the future,” Vance said.
