• Mistrust, threats cloud opening of technical talks at Lake Lucerne Summit
• Talks ‘suspended’ after first 80-minute session, over fresh Trump threat
• US president claims Washington is ‘guardian angel of Hormuz’
• VP Vance says peace requires ‘give and take’; gushes with praise for Field Marshal Munir
• PM Shehbaz hopeful of ‘wonderful’ outcome
• Qatari PM says committed to peaceful solution
• Iranian delegation avoids handshake, photo op with US team
BUERGENSTOCK: Iranian and US delegations met face to face in Switzerland on Sunday, even as mistrust and threats from both sides clouded their professed desire for peace.
Dubbed the ‘Lake Lucerne Summit’, technical-level talks hosted by mediators Pakistan and Qatar opened on Sunday, but lasted only 80 minutes before they were halted after — according to Iranian media — President Donald Trump’s threats.
Reuters quoted Iranian sources as saying that talks had been paused, not ended. However, there was no clarity at the time of going to press about when the two sides would reconvene.
Earlier, even as Vice President J.D. Vance met Iranian officials, his boss had threatened to restart the war if Tehran continued its closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble. If they don’t, we’ll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!”, Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday.
Fox News reported that Trump had gone further in an interview, saying he had told Iranian officials if they closed the strait “you won’t have a country”.
Describing Washington as the “guardian angel” of the Strait of Hormuz and the Middle East, Trump said the United States may “take over” the strait in the future “if they have to and collect tolls”.
According to Trump, this would involve the US “taking 20 per cent of the oil that passes through the strait”.
In an apparent response to Trump’s statement, Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf on Sunday warned the US against making threats, vowing that “our armed forces are ready to respond”.
“Don’t they think that if their threats had any effect, they would not have reached today’s state of desperation? We do not take American threats into account,” said Ghalibaf, after President Donald Trump threatened to strike Iran over its support for Hezbollah.
“They would do better to be careful with their statements; our armed forces are ready to respond to them in a different manner. No matter what they say, we are the ones who act.”
Speaking on Sunday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran would not relinquish its right to enrich uranium, though he repeated Iran’s denial that it wants nuclear weapons.
“We can also state in writing that we have no intention of building a bomb,” he said on the presidential website.
Esmail Baqaei, meanwhile, said the unfreezing of Iranian assets and “issuing the necessary licences for the sale of Iranian oil will also be on the agenda”.
Despite the announcement of a new ceasefire in Lebanon last week, there has been scant sign of an end to fighting there. Iran, arguing that Washington had failed to meet its commitment to halt fighting in Lebanon, shut the strait again over the weekend.
Iran’s Fars news agency reported on Sunday that no new permits were being issued for ships to cross until further notice. Although US officials disputed that the strait was closed, but commercially available shipping data showed an immediate impact.
What happened at the talks?
Ahead of the talks, Iran’s negotiating team refused a planned exchange of handshakes and a group photograph with their US counterparts.
Following Iran’s refusal, a live TV broadcast and photo session proceeded without the Iranian delegation.
The Iranians entered the venue only after the media event concluded. Before Vance made his remarks, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi briefly walked into the room and embraced Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, but did not interact with the US vice president, who was at the back of the room.
In his remarks, US Vice President JD Vance told the press that “peace requires give and take”.
“This is a historic meet. Never before have Iranian and American leadership met at such a high level outside of Islamabad,” he said.
“What today really represents is the beginning of a technical negotiation that’s not going to solve every disagreement, but is going to allow us to sit together as teams, for the first time really in history, to figure out what matters most to the respective parties, to settle those issues, to solve those issues, and get to a better tomorrow,” he told reporters.
“The reason why the political leadership of the respective countries is here is because we wanted to, first of all, set up the structure for these technical negotiations, and second of all, make sure that our teams have our full support and know they can always call on us to break through any barriers.”
“Can we change relations in the Middle East, or do we go back to doing things the old way?” he said.
“Where Iran and the Gulf have had an unfriendly relationship, or Iran has been a driver of regional instability? We see a future where everyone can work together to promote peace and prosperity for everyone.”
“If Iran is willing to give up nuclear weapon ambitions for the long term, the US is willing to transform relations with them,” Vance said.
VP Vance also played down the impact of violence in Lebanon, saying progress had been made towards ending hostilities there. “These things are always a little bit messy,” he said.
Even as Trump was threatening Iran, Vance told reporters the US president had “asked us to turn over a new leaf to transform our relationship with the people of Iran”.
The US vice president also expressed appreciation for PM Shehbaz and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir, saying: “I have joked that I have two very, very important people in my life. An Indian and a Pakistani. The Indian is my wife, and the Pakistani is Field Marshal Munir,” he said, adding that he had “probably talked to Field Marshal Munir more than anyone else over the last few months”.
Pakistan, Qatar hope for results
Addressing the opening ceremony ahead of the closed-door talks, PM Shehbaz said he was looking forward to productive talks, and expressed satisfaction that the joint efforts of everyone in involved in the peace process had culminated in the meet in Buergenstock.
“I think here we are going to have wonderful discussions which will lead to, hopefully, very productive results in times to come,” he said.
“Hopefully, when we go back to our homes, we’ll have some wonderful paper in our hands which will promote peace, progress, and prosperity around the globe,” he said.
He thanked US President Donald Trump and VP JD Vance for their leadership, and praised CDF Field Marshal Asim Munir for his consistent efforts, perseverance and patience during the mediation process.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani also spoke at the opening ceremony, thanking both the US and Iranian delegations for their efforts to make peace in the Middle East.
“I think that everyone of you has highlighted how important and historic this is, not only on the security of the region but also for the security of the world and for the global economy,” the Qatari PM said.
“I would like to thank all of you for your leadership and determination that put us in this room. This is not really the main celebration, this is just the beginning and I wish everyone all the best,” Al Thani said.
He added that Qatar would remain dedicated to the partnership to support mediation efforts until a solution is reached.
*With input from Agencies*Published in Dawn, June 22nd, 2026