Bern, Switzerland. U.S. Vice President JD Vance arrived in Switzerland on Sunday for peace talks with Iran as both countries seek a durable end to their war while disagreeing over Iran’s claim that it had closed the Strait of Hormuz. The talks come under a 60-day ceasefire agreed by both sides while negotiations continue.
Talks proceed amid conflicting claims
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps declared on Saturday that the Strait of Hormuz was shut, but the U.S. military said commercial vessels had continued operating in the waterway.
Both sides are seeking to advance an interim deal brokered by Pakistan and signed on Wednesday by Presidents Donald Trump and Masoud Pezeshkian to end the nearly four-month war.
Strait of Hormuz and Lebanon add pressure to negotiations
The Revolutionary Guards, citing what they called Israeli “crimes” in Lebanon that violated U.S. commitments to a ceasefire, warned that ships would be at risk if they approached the strait, a key route for global oil and gas supplies.
U.S. Central Command said 55 merchant ships transited the strait on Saturday carrying more than 17 million barrels of oil to global markets. It added that U.S. forces would ensure commercial traffic continues.
Dispute over ceasefire commitments
Trump said no toll would be charged for passage through the strait during or after the 60-day ceasefire, unless the U.S. imposes one if peace talks fail. In a social media post, he said the United States could levy a toll “for services rendered as the Guardian Angel to the countries of the Middle East” if a peace deal is not completed.
Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, said on X that the U.S. had failed to implement the first clause of the 14-point interim deal with Iran, which includes a ceasefire “on all fronts,” including Lebanon.
He said that as long as the agreement remained only on paper, the flow of Middle East energy would remain halted.
Lebanon truce remains fragile
The truce in Lebanon appeared fragile as Israeli forces and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah attacked each other.
