Swiss Iran talks end, technical negotiations to continue this week

High-level US-Iran talks in Switzerland ended with technical negotiations set to continue this week. The pause leaves Lebanon, Hormuz and uranium enrichment disputes unresolved despite signs of progress.

In Short

• Pakistan and Qatar said mediators will oversee technical discussions this week
• Iran claimed good progress, though state media described a difficult phase
• Trump's threats complicated diplomacy on Lebanon, sanctions relief and nuclear issues

High-level talks in Switzerland aimed at finding a permanent end to the Iran war have ended, mediators said early Monday, while technical discussions will continue for the rest of the week. Pakistan and Qatar, which mediated the talks, made the announcement, while the United States did not immediately acknowledge it. Iran said through foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei that "good progress was made".

The talks are the start of a 60-day diplomatic process to try to reach a permanent deal, but fighting involving Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon continued to cast a shadow over the effort. At the same time, Iran said it had again shut the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, though the US said shipping traffic continued.

The negotiations had a tense opening after US President Donald Trump threatened to attack Iran and warned that its president should watch what he says. The remarks, made on social media and to news outlets, complicated efforts by Vice President J D Vance and mediators from Pakistan and Qatar to keep Iran engaged in talks on its nuclear programme, the Strait of Hormuz and the unfreezing of billions of dollars in Iranian assets.

Before moving to those issues, Iran wanted the talks to focus on Lebanon, saying the deal was meant to halt conflict on all fronts. Trump wrote on social media: "Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble. If they don't, we'll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!!!" Iran's lead negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, replied on X: "They would do better to be careful about their statements. Our armed forces are prepared to respond to them in a different manner. They may keep talking, it is we who act."

Iranian state media said the talks entered a "difficult phase" and were recessed after what it called the publication of an insulting message by the US president. It said the Iranian delegation then met Qatari mediators and left the negotiating site. Earlier, Vance and other US negotiators, including Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, had met Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi for about 80 minutes.

Negotiators discussed mechanisms to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, ensure a ceasefire in southern Lebanon is enforced and hold what were described as robust discussions on the nuclear issue. As the talks began, Vance said: "The question before us now is how much more can we accomplish together? Can we turn over a new leaf?" He also asked whether they could "change relations in the Middle East permanently".

The US wants Iran to remain in negotiations over its nuclear programme amid concerns it could be used for military purposes, which Tehran denies. Washington also wants Iran to commit to keeping the Strait of Hormuz open after Tehran said on Saturday that it had closed it. The US disputed that claim, saying shipping traffic continued on Sunday.

Baghaei said Tehran first wanted the discussions to focus on the conflict in Lebanon. A renewed ceasefire in Lebanon, brokered on Saturday, appeared to be holding, and Israel's military said it would lift movement restrictions for residents near the Lebanon border on Monday morning. But neither Israel nor Hezbollah is a signatory to the US-Iran deal. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israeli forces will remain in southern Lebanon until any threat to Israel is removed, while Hezbollah has said it will not stop attacks unless Israel commits to withdrawing.

The agreement signed by Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian immediately allowed Tehran to sell its oil freely and opened the way for Iran to access billions of dollars in frozen assets. A member of Iran's negotiating team told state television that draft wording had been agreed on "temporary sanctions waivers for oil and petroleum derivatives". The agreement also called for Iran to dilute its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, believed to be buried under nuclear sites targeted in US strikes a year ago. But Pezeshkian said on Sunday: "we will never back down from the right to enrich uranium, and the other side is also forced to accept it".

Trump later told Fox News by telephone that the Iranian president should watch what he says and threatened to take over Iran, according to comments relayed by a Fox correspondent. Iran approached the talks cautiously after earlier US negotiations on the nuclear issue were twice disrupted in the past year by military strikes. For now, the high-level phase in Switzerland has ended, technical work will continue, and the wider questions over Lebanon, the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's nuclear programme remain unresolved.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends