Vice President J.D. Vance said Monday, June 22, 2026, that lengthy talks with senior Iranian officials in Switzerland have created a “good foundation for a successful final deal” aimed at permanently ending the war that the United States and Israel began in late February 2026. The meetings, part of a mediation effort held in Switzerland, brought U.S. and Iranian delegations together for initial negotiations on a cessation of hostilities and broader settlement.
“This final deal is the house,” Vance told reporters after opening discussions with Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf. “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,” he said, framing the talks as an early but meaningful step toward a comprehensive agreement.
Iran described the talks as achieving “major progress,” highlighting efforts to end fighting in Lebanon and calling that outcome the first real test of the negotiations. Both sides appear to view the Lebanon issue as a key measure of the talks’ seriousness and feasibility.
The mediation, which began on Sunday and extended into early Monday, had rocky moments, negotiators and mediators acknowledged, but also produced some preliminary agreements. Mediators said technical talks will continue this week as teams work to turn the foundation Vance described into detailed commitments and enforceable steps.
If the technical discussions succeed, diplomats say, the next phase would be translating agreed principles into a final package that could halt the fighting and address security and political concerns in the region. — AP
Original Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/west-asia-war-iran-us-conflict-israel-lebanon-strikes-strait-of-hormuz-tehran-washington-peace-talks-in-switzerland-live-updates-june-22-2026/article71131544.ece
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Publish Date: 2026-06-23 02:03:00
