Washington believes that negotiations with Tehran are currently progressing relatively well, but the possibility of renewed military action against the Islamic Republic remains, said US Vice President J. D. Vance.
“We believe that we have made great progress. We believe that the Iranians want a deal“, he told reporters at the White House. “The President of the United States has instructed us to negotiate in good faith, and that is exactly what we are doing.“ “So we are in a pretty good position right now. But there is a Plan B. Plan B is to be able to resume the military campaign to further the objectives of the United States,” Vance explained.
“The president does not want that. And I do not think the Iranians want that“, he stressed.
The Washington administration would not want enriched uranium to be transferred from Iran to Russia; that is not the current US plan, Vance stressed.
“As for the transfer of enriched uranium to Russia, those issues are being discussed in the negotiations. That is not our current plan. That has never been our plan“, he told reporters at the White House. “I have seen some reports of that. I don't know where they're coming from, but the president will continue to negotiate to make a deal," Vance added.
“So that's not the current plan of the U.S. government“, he stressed. “The Iranians have never raised that issue. I don't think the Iranians would be very enthusiastic about it. And I know the president is not very enthusiastic about it either. But who knows? I'm not going to make any promises about pre-negotiations on any specific issue.“
“The United States cannot be the world's policeman. We want to be a good ally and we want our military presence to contribute to regional stability in Europe,“, Trump's vice president also said.
“The president has not said that we are withdrawing all troops from Europe. But Europe must stand on its own two feet, and we are consistent in this regard“, added Vance.
He stressed that the withdrawal of these troops is not intended to encourage Russia or “punish“ Poland. The US vice president did not rule out the possibility that these forces could be sent to another European country. “We have not yet made a final decision on where these troops will ultimately be deployed“, he noted.
Vance vowed that the armed conflict with Iran would not become another “forever war“ for the United States.
“This will not be something that lasts forever“, he assured, commenting on the duration of military operations against Iran. “You say: “The conflict has been going on for 11 weeks.“ But a significant part of that period was a ceasefire. This is not a forever war. We will do our job and go home. That's what the president promised. And that's exactly what he will do,“ Vance said.
He acknowledged that many Americans, especially those of his generation, “worry about forever, never-ending conflicts“.
Trump's vice president is 41 years old. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps (2003-2007). He spent six months in Iraq as part of the U.S. military operation to overthrow President Saddam Hussein, but he did not participate in combat. Vance has recently been a vocal opponent of the frequent use of American forces abroad.