BUERGENSTOCK, Switzerland, June 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. and Iranian negotiators held talks Sunday at Buergenstock mountain resort in central Switzerland on implementing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by the two sides to reach a final deal.
The talks mark the first round between the two sides after the signing of the MoU aimed at ending conflict on all fronts, including Lebanon.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who leads the U.S. negotiating team, said before the talks that the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and the ending of the Iranian nuclear program have already been accomplished.
"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," Vance said.
Great progress has been made over the last few hours and additional progress will be made in the hours to come, Vance said, adding that Sunday's talks are purely technical in nature and are not aimed at settling all the differences between the parties.
Meanwhile, the Iranian side said the U.S. side must fulfill its commitments under the MoU, Iran's semi-official Fars news agency quoted Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei as saying.
If some of the U.S. commitments are not implemented, the entire MoU will be at risk, Baghaei added.
At the start of the talks, the Iranian delegation opposed a handshake and joint photo ceremony planned by the U.S. delegation and the organizers of the meeting, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported, citing a source close to the negotiating team.
Just as the talks were taking place in Switzerland, Trump threatened on his Truth Social platform to "hit Iran very hard again" if the country does not stop Hezbollah from "causing trouble."
The talks were originally scheduled for Friday but were later postponed and rescheduled for Sunday after Israel launched deadly strikes in Lebanon.
Iran announced Saturday the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, citing U.S., Israeli "violations" of the MoU. However, Washington has denied seeing any evidence of the closure.
The U.S. negotiating team also includes U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, while the
Iranian delegation includes Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, as well as senior security, central bank and oil officials.
Pakistani and Qatari mediators are participating in the talks.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi was also at the site, as he said on social platform X that he met with Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis there to discuss "recent developments regarding Iran" and other issues.
"At this critical moment, it's important to give diplomacy every opportunity to succeed," Grossi said.
According to a report by the Tasnim news agency, the U.S. side wanted Grossi to be present in the talks, but Iran rejected the idea. ■
