US, Iran head to Switzerland for face-to-face talks as Strait of Hormuz tensions flare

Iran declares renewed Hormuz blockade, but US says ships keep moving; Vance departs for Geneva as Iranian delegation arrives; Lebanon truce and nuclear issues on agenda; Trump raises prospect of Hormuz transit fees if deal fails

The United States and Iran are expected to launch substantive working-level negotiations following the signing of a cease-fire memorandum of understanding in Geneva, Switzerland. The US delegation is expected to be led by Vice President JD Vance. [Getty Images]

Iran's declaration Saturday of a renewed blockade of the Strait of Hormuz put the US-Iran cease-fire memorandum of understanding to the test almost immediately after it took effect. Both sides nonetheless signaled a willingness to keep talking, with delegations from each country heading to Switzerland for face-to-face working-level talks Sunday.

Vice President JD Vance said before departing for Switzerland from Joint Base Andrews near Washington that the two sides would hold "about two days of negotiations" and that he hoped to "make progress on the nuclear issue and the Lebanon truce."

Asked about Israel's continued airstrikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon after the MOU took effect, Vance said "the situation is improving." He added that it was "an issue we need to continue to manage in order to ensure the safety and stability of both Israel and Lebanon."

Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law, arrived in Switzerland ahead of Vance, with the US appearing to concentrate its diplomatic firepower on the follow-up negotiations.

Iran's negotiating delegation, led by parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, also arrived in Switzerland Sunday, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said.

The two countries had been scheduled to hold their first working-level talks in Switzerland to discuss nuclear issues and the lifting of sanctions following the MOU signing, but the meetings were delayed as fighting between Israel and Hezbollah continued in Lebanon.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry, which is mediating the cease-fire negotiations, confirmed in a statement Sunday that the face-to-face working-level talks would take place in Switzerland. Iran's Khatam al-Anbia Central Headquarters, which coordinates the country's armed forces, said earlier that the United States and Israel had violated the MOU over the situation in Lebanon and announced it was reimposing a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz.

The Trump administration, rather than directly criticizing the Iranian declaration, emphasized that vessel traffic through the strait was continuing unimpeded. Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins, a CENTCOM spokesperson, told Reuters and The New York Times on Sunday that "Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz" and that "shipping continues."

Despite rising tensions over the strait, the fact that both delegations were still traveling to Switzerland led observers to suggest the two sides were unlikely to slide into a full-blown crisis. However, Iran's insistence that the US and Israel had violated the MOU, combined with lingering uncertainty over Israel's military operations in Lebanon, left open the possibility of unexpected complications during the negotiations.

Iran's Foreign Ministry said Sunday that the purpose of the Switzerland meeting was not to launch substantive negotiations but to review alleged MOU violations and press the United States to comply with its commitments. The Geneva talks are therefore a test of whether the two sides can move past the MOU dispute and advance to full-scale follow-on negotiations over Iran's nuclear program and sanctions relief.

Amid the tensions, Trump posted on Truth Social that there would be "no tolls" in the Strait of Hormuz during the 60-day truce period "and no tolls after the 60 days expire either." He added, however, that the exception would be "if a final deal is not reached, in which case tolls would be imposed to recoup past, present and future costs incurred for the service provided by the United States as the guardian angel of Middle Eastern nations." The remarks signaled that if a final agreement with Iran falls through, the United States could impose transit fees on the strait.

The statement was interpreted as serving a dual purpose: signaling that Washington would not tolerate Iran imposing its own Hormuz tolls after the truce period, while also laying out the argument that the United States could demand compensation for maintaining maritime security in the Middle East if a final deal collapses.

ikson@heraldcorp.com