Geneva talks postponed and Vance stands down as Iran deal uncertainty deepens

World iranIsraelUnited Statesuswar Geneva talks postponed and Vance stands down as Iran deal uncertainty deepens Geneva Talks Postponed And Vance Stands Down As Iran Deal Uncertainty Deepens Relevant News Geneva talks postponed and Vance stands down as Iran deal uncertainty deepens 19 June 2026 Anastasiades to face press on Mafia State findings as implicated officials push back 19 June 2026 Oroklini drowning eyewitness raises alarm over missing signage and unstaffed lifeguard post 19 June 2026 Newsroom 19 June 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Planned talks between US and Iranian negotiators in Switzerland will not go ahead on Friday, and Vice President JD Vance has abandoned plans to travel there, Switzerland confirmed, fuelling uncertainty over whether a lasting truce can be secured. “The logistics of these negotiations have never been simple or predictable,” a White House spokesperson said. A Swiss foreign ministry statement said the talks had been postponed but that Switzerland remained ready to facilitate negotiations and that preparatory work at the Burgenstock mountain resort was continuing. Iran had said it was ready for technical talks after Wednesday’s 14-point accord extended the ceasefire by at least 60 days, but had stipulated it first needed to see signs of the US implementing the interim deal. There was no confirmation Iran’s delegation would travel to Switzerland, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported before Thursday’s US announcement. Iran’s foreign ministry had also cast doubt on the need for a formal signing ceremony, calling it unnecessary after both presidents had already signed the pact. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei said Trump had signed the deal “out of desperation” and signalled that coming talks over Tehran’s nuclear programme would not be straightforward. “If the American side wants to be too demanding, we will not accept it,” he said. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council vowed a “reciprocal response” to any violation by the “untrustworthy” American side, saying it would show “no leniency” until the nation’s full rights were secured. WAR AIMS UNMET When the US and Israel launched the war nearly four months ago, Trump said he aimed to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities, end Tehran’s ability to strike its neighbours, prevent it from backing regional militias and create conditions for Iranians to topple their government. None of those objectives had been met when Trump signed the agreement. Iran restated its longstanding position of never seeking nuclear weapons — a claim doubted by successive US presidents — and agreed to on-site “down blending” of its highly enriched uranium stockpile and inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency as a Non-Proliferation Treaty member. It rejected Trump’s demand to remove the material from the country entirely. The memorandum provides Iran with sanctions relief, the unfreezing of assets worth tens of billions of dollars and immediate US waivers on its oil exports — a far cry from the “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” Trump had demanded in March. In Washington, some Republican allies in Congress questioned whether he had conceded too much, with the war unpopular among Americans ahead of November’s midterm elections. The US defence department separately told lawmakers it needed $80 billion to cover war costs and other bills, the Wall Street Journal reported. Critics say Iran is now in a stronger position than before the war, having withstood a superpower attack, demonstrated its control of the Strait of Hormuz and secured valuable financial concessions. Iran has said it will continue to exercise joint control of the strait with Oman and intends to charge ships service fees — though not during the 60-day negotiating period. Oil prices dipped on Friday as tankers began moving through the reopening waterway. US officials say negotiations could still yield a strong agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme, potentially surpassing the 2015 accord Trump tore up in his first term. Vance said Washington would also seek to limit Iran’s long-range missiles in the coming talks. ISRAEL PRESSES ON IN LEBANON In Lebanon, where more than a million people have been displaced, fresh Israeli strikes on Friday killed at least 18, Lebanon’s state news agency NNA reported, in attacks Israel said targeted Hezbollah. The deal calls for the “permanent termination” of the war in Lebanon, but Israel has said it has no intention of withdrawing, releasing a new map depicting an expanded occupation zone. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has distanced Israel from the US-Iran accord throughout, and Israel was excluded from the peace talks. Trump has become openly critical of Israel’s Lebanon operations, opening what analysts describe as one of the biggest rifts between the two countries in decades. The extent to which Washington will press its wartime ally to halt its offensive remains unclear. 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