Adjunkpres. JD Vance (Foto: WIN MCNAMEE /Getty Images via AFP)
JD Vance, the US Vice President, will not travel to Switzerland on Friday for talks to end the war with Iran.
The signing of the agreement earlier this week was supposed to end the conflict in Iran, reopen the Strait of Hormuz and usher in a 60-day period for further discussions on broader issues, including Iran’s nuclear program.
At the same time, it was also to end the conflict in Lebanon, but new attacks broke out between Israel and Hezbollah militants, who are supported by Iran.
It also seems less and less likely that a formal signing ceremony between the US and Iran, which was originally planned for Friday in Switzerland, will take place.
“The logistics of these negotiations have never been simple or predictable. At this stage, the deputy president is not leaving tonight,” a spokesman for the White House said late Thursday.
“We look forward to starting technical discussions as soon as possible.”
In Iran, the Tasnim news agency reported that “nothing has been confirmed” about the Iranian delegation’s trip to Switzerland.
The agreement was signed separately by pres. Donald Trump of the USA and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday that he had approved the deal.
Pres. On Monday, Vladimir Putin pledged his “unwavering support” to Iran’s new supreme leader. (Photo: ROUZBEH FOULADI / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES / MIDDLE EAST IMAGES VIA AFP)
Khamenei – who took over the reins after Ali Khamenei, his father and predecessor, was killed in an airstrike on the first day of the war on February 28 – said in a written statement that he had a “different view” on the agreement, without elaborating further.
“But I gave permission because of the commitment” of officials, including Pezeshkian, to “protect the rights of the Iranian people”.
He also said that direct negotiations with the US will take place in the future, but that this does not mean that Iran accepts the “enemy’s position”.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s chief negotiator, warned on Friday that Iran would react “decisively” if the agreement was broken.
Hormoes open again; tension continues
US forces on Thursday lifted their naval blockade of Iranian ports, preventing ships from sailing to or from Iran. However, US warships will remain in the area.
Traffic in the Strait of Hormuz – a strategic passage for global energy shipments – remains restricted.
Three Saudi oil tankers left Thursday together with a French ship, loaded with liquefied natural gas, through the strait.
Iranian state television, citing the country’s national security council, said that ships wishing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz must now apply to a new government body that oversees the strait.
According to the terms of the agreement, no fees will be charged for a period of 60 days.
A protester holds up a portrait of Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, during a demonstration in Paris, France. (Photo: Quentin de Groeve/AFP)
Fighting in Lebanon continues
Although the agreement was supposed to end the current conflict with Iran, fighting continues in Lebanon.
Hezbollah said on Friday that its fighters had destroyed three Israeli tanks in southern Lebanon and that attacks were still ongoing.
Israel has not yet confirmed whether its tanks were indeed hit.
Three people were also killed in Israeli drone strikes in Lebanon on Thursday.
Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the conflict in March by attacking Israel in response to the assassination of Iran’s supreme leader at the start of the US-Israel campaign.
Peace still uncertain
Some people in Iran remain skeptical about the chances of lasting peace.
“I have no hope that this is a lasting agreement. Maybe they will start fighting again after the 60 days,” said Mina (54), a resident of Tehran.
This sentiment is shared by Emmanuel Macron, the French president, who led the signing at the Palace of Versailles. Macron said he did not believe the war was “completely over”.
Oil sanctions and nuclear negotiations
Under the deal, the US commits to immediately lifting oil sanctions that are hurting Iran’s economy.
Once a final agreement on Iran’s nuclear program is reached, the US will help make available a reconstruction fund of $300 billion, supported by regional countries.
Trump’s decision to end the war – in which 13 US soldiers were killed and large quantities of US ammunition were used – has upset some of his US allies.
US Senator Bill Cassidy described it as the “biggest foreign policy blunder in decades”.
However, Trump says that further military pressure on Iran would be counterproductive.
“The only way I can act harder is if I go in there for another two or three weeks and keep bombing them. But what do we achieve by that?” he said.
“The Strait of Hormuz will not be open. We will be without oil for months. This is the kind of thing that can cause a global depression.”