US-Iran talks in Switzerland face pressure after Trump renews threats

US and Iranian negotiators met in Switzerland on Sunday in a new round of talks aimed at building on last week's interim agreement to end the war in Iran. The discussions took place at a mountainside resort near Lake Lucerne and came as both sides tried to keep the diplomatic channel open. The meeting was immediately complicated by renewed warnings from Donald Trump over Hezbollah and the Strait of Hormuz.

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JD Vance said there was a chance to "turn over a new leaf" with Iran as the talks continued. According to the reporting, Vance and other US negotiators met Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Mediators from Pakistan and Qatar were also present, and the direct engagement reportedly lasted about 80 minutes.

The talks were part of an effort to expand the interim deal reached last week, with the United States seeking to lock Iran into negotiations over its nuclear programme. Washington has long said it is concerned the programme could be used for military purposes, an allegation Tehran denies. The US side was also pressing Iran to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, a strategic waterway through which about a fifth of the world's traded oil passes.

Trump's comments added a sharper security dimension to the diplomacy. He said Iran should stop what he described as Hezbollah-linked trouble in Lebanon and warned that the US could strike Iran again if the Strait of Hormuz were closed. He also said the US would hit Iran "very hard again" if it did not comply, language that raised the stakes for the negotiations taking place far from Washington and Tehran.

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The setting matters because the Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most sensitive energy chokepoints. Any threat to shipping there can quickly affect oil markets and wider regional security. The talks also sit against the backdrop of the conflict in Lebanon, where Israel's refusal to withdraw from a security zone in southern Lebanon was described as another factor weighing on the fragile process.

Iranian officials responded in a combative tone. Qalibaf warned on social media that Iran's armed forces were prepared to respond and said the country would act rather than merely talk. That exchange underlined how quickly the diplomatic track can be affected by public statements from political leaders, especially when military threats are involved.

The negotiations also reflect a broader attempt by mediators to prevent the situation from sliding back into open confrontation. Pakistan and Qatar were present as intermediaries, suggesting that outside actors remain central to keeping the process alive. Their separate private meetings with both delegations indicate that the talks were not limited to a single bilateral exchange.

What remains unclear is whether the latest round can produce any concrete follow-up after the interim agreement. It is also not known how far the sides are prepared to go on nuclear restrictions, regional security, or the status of the Strait of Hormuz. The next developments will depend on whether the rhetoric from both capitals eases or whether the warnings turn into further military or diplomatic escalation.

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