Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Delegations led by US Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf began talks in Switzerland on Sunday in an effort to restore peace in West Asia. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and senior Qatari leaders joined the quadrilateral meeting, called the Lake Lucerne Summit, as mediators.
The talks are centred on implementing key provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding signed last week by US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, with Sharif as guarantor. The MoU opened a 60-day negotiation window focused on Iran’s nuclear programme, sanctions on Tehran and Israel’s offensive in Lebanon. Technical discussions were meant to begin on Friday but were delayed after fresh firing between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.
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Sunday marked the first time in 10 weeks that top US and Iranian leaders were in the same room for direct negotiations, after their last meeting in Islamabad in April ended without a deal. Other participants included US envoy Steve Witkoff and adviser Jared Kushner, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and diplomat Esmaeil Baghaei, and Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces Asim Munir. Ahead of the talks, Vance said, “The opening of the Strait of Hormuz, the ending of the Iranian nuclear program, all of these things have already been accomplished.” He added, “The question before us now is how much more can we accomplish together? Can we turn over a new leaf? Can we change relations in the Middle East permanently or do we go back to doing things the old way, which is not our preference.” Calling it a “historic” meeting, he said, “Never before has the Iranian and American leadership met at such a high level.”
Before the meeting, Baghaei said in a post on X, “The Islamic Republic of Iran is determined to meticulously and seriously pursue the process of implementing the other party’s commitments.” He said carrying out the MoU required an end to the war “on all fronts”, without which “entry into the negotiation phase for the final agreement is not possible”. Lebanon was widely expected to dominate the discussions after recent clashes between Israel and Hezbollah put pressure on the fragile US-Iran ceasefire arrangement, while Vance has also indicated that Washington wants progress on talks around Iran’s nuclear stock.
Sharif praised Trump and acknowledged the role of the Iranian leadership before the quadrilateral meeting. Standing with Vance and Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, he said, “Hopefully when we go back to our homes, we’ll have some wonderful paper in our hand which will promote peace, progress and prosperity around the globe.” The Qatari prime minister said, “Hopefully, this is just the beginning, and I wish everyone all the best. Qatar will stay dedicated to this partnership to support these mediations until the end, until we reach a solution. We will always be a partner in bringing more peace, prosperity, and hopefully a better future for our region.”
On the sidelines, International Atomic Energy Agency director Rafael Mariano Grossi said he had met Ignazio Cassis, vice president of the Swiss Federal Council, in Burgenstock “to take stock of recent developments regarding Iran, the path ahead and the important role” of the agency. Cassis also met Araghchi and later posted, “At the Lake Lucerne Summit, we offer the framework for discussion and dialogue. In a challenging context, the relationship of trust between Switzerland and Iran, reflected in our protecting power mandate, remains in the service of diplomacy and for peace and security in the Middle East.” The talks come amid continuing diplomatic efforts after weeks of military escalation involving the US, Iran and Israel. They are meant to formally launch negotiations on curbing Tehran’s nuclear programme and move the interim arrangement towards a more durable peace.
The MoU had led to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s energy supplies pass in normal times. But Iran said on Saturday that it had closed the strait again, citing the Israeli attack in Lebanon. Vance said the Gulf chokepoint remains open for shipping, while Trump threatened to impose American tolls there if no final deal with Iran is reached within 60 days. Sunday’s meeting brought together the main players and mediators as they tried to push the MoU forward and reduce tensions across the region.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
