The latest developments surrounding the US-Iran framework agreement are the leading topic in the Western press for another day, after US Vice President J.D. Vance canceled his planned trip to Switzerland today, where he was to hold talks with an Iranian delegation, BTA reports.
Great Britain
US-Iranian talks in Switzerland were suddenly canceled, the British newspaper "Guardian" headlines.
US Vice President J.D. Vance's team arrived at Andrews Air Force Base, ready to fly to the meeting in Bürgenstock for talks with Iran, before the trip was suddenly canceled, the British newspaper notes. edition.
Talks between the US and Iran, which were due to take place today on the implementation of a 14-point agreement to end the war between the two countries, were cancelled at the last minute, the Swiss foreign ministry said.
The talks were due to begin in the small Swiss village of Aubourg today, two days after the signing of a memorandum of understanding that provides for a 60-day period for negotiations to reach a lasting agreement on Iran's nuclear program, as well as the restoration of oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.
The White House said the US looked forward to "starting technical negotiations as soon as possible", announcing that J.D. Vance, who is leading the negotiations on behalf of US President Donald Trump's government, would not travel to Switzerland.
"The logistics of these negotiations have never been simple or predictable. "As of now, the vice president will not be leaving tonight," a White House spokesman said last night.
The cancellation of the talks came so suddenly that Vance's team and a small group of journalists had even gathered at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington in anticipation of the trip. Dozens of White House officials, members of the preparatory team and media were already in Switzerland to prepare for Vance's expected arrival, the Guardian notes.
Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said yesterday that he had approved the memorandum of understanding despite his reservations, while at the same time the US officially lifted the blockade of Iranian ports.
However, the semi-official Iranian news agency Tasnim reported before the talks were canceled that Iranian negotiators needed to see signs of US implementation of the framework agreement before they could begin the next rounds of peace talks, and that there was no confirmation that their delegation would travel to Geneva.
The cancellation of the talks came after information on the pan-Arab satellite channel "Al-Mayadeen", which is affiliated with the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group "Hezbollah", that Iran was delaying the dispatch of delegation to Switzerland over Israel's ongoing military campaign in Lebanon.
Israel, which was not included in the peace talks and has distanced itself from the US-Iran agreement, continues to wage war against "Hezbollah" in Lebanon.
The memorandum of understanding calls for a "final end" to the war in Lebanon and to guarantee the country's "territorial integrity and sovereignty". US President Donald Trump said he expects a complete ceasefire on all fronts.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has continued to insist that it has no intention of withdrawing from Lebanon, leading to open criticism from Trump and Vance of Israeli operations.
Iran's chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned on Monday of consequences for any breach of the agreement, saying: "In the event of wrongdoing, breach of the treaty and excess of authority by the other side, we have no doubt that the enemy will be given a decisive response."
The diplomatic exchange over the planned talks has heightened uncertainty about whether a lasting ceasefire will be reached in the regional war that has killed at least 7,000 people, sent energy prices soaring and shaken global markets. markets.
Khamenei said yesterday that Trump signed the agreement "out of desperation" and made it clear that the upcoming negotiations would not be easy, the Guardian reports.
"If the American side chooses to be too demanding, we will not accept it," he said in a written statement. The agreement gives negotiators 60 days to reach an agreement on Iran's nuclear program, unless the two sides agree to an extension, and provides for the creation of a $300 billion recovery fund for Iran, as well as other financial incentives.
US forces lifted a naval blockade of Iranian ports on Wednesday that had prevented ships from sailing to or from the Islamic Republic, the US military said, noting that US warships "will remain in the area".
Passage through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic sea route for transporting energy resources that Iran blocked during the conflict, remains restricted, the British newspaper notes.
J.D. Vance has launched a scathing attack on the Israeli government for criticizing the Iran deal, another British publication, the Financial Times, headlined. Times".
The US vice president's rebukes are increasing tensions between the allies, who together started the war against Iran but whose interests have since diverged. Netanyahu faces domestic criticism over Trump's framework deal, which many in Israel see as a capitulation to Tehran.
"This really bothers me," Vance said yesterday, adding: "You've seen people in the (Netanyahu) government who have spoken out and attacked the deal, and in some ways attacked the president of the United States very directly."
Vance said his message to Netanyahu's office is that it needs to remember that the United States is one of Israel's few allies with global influence and that the country gets most of its weapons from Washington.
"Donald Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is showing empathy for the Israeli people right now," the US vice president said.
USA
Vance sharply criticized the reaction of Israel on Iran deal as US forces lift blockade on Iranian ports, writes the headline of the American newspaper "Washington Post".
Israeli leaders need to "wake up to reality", namely that they are isolated on the international stage, US Vice President J.D. Vance said yesterday in response to Israeli criticism of the agreement concluded this week by the Trump administration with Iran after the US military announced that it had lifted the blockade on Iranian ports.
Using unusually sharp language to rebuke senior representatives of Washington's closest ally in the Middle East, Vance said that "two-thirds" of the weapons that have defended Israel over the past three months have been paid for by American taxpayers.
The warning came as a 60-day deadline for negotiations on Iran's nuclear program began to run, after US President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Massoud Pezeshkian signed the agreement a day earlier.
Those talks are due to begin in Switzerland in the coming days. Vance said the timing of the talks was not yet clear, but that they could begin as early as this weekend. The White House announced last night that Vance would not travel to Switzerland today. US officials did not specify a date for his trip, the Washington Post notes.
France
Vance postpones visit to Switzerland for talks with Iran, French newspaper Le Monde headlines.
The framework agreement signed by Trump and Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday kicked off a 60-day period of talks on broader issues between the two warring countries, including Iran's nuclear program. However, there was uncertainty about the next steps, Le Monde noted.
It seemed unlikely that the two countries, which have not had diplomatic relations since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, would hold a signing ceremony and talks in Switzerland today, as previously announced.
Trump's decision to end the war, which has killed 13 American service members and used up a significant portion of the US's ammunition stockpile, has alarmed some of his allies at home. US Senator Bill Cassidy, from Trump's Republican Party, called it "the biggest foreign policy mistake in decades."
In an interview with Axios, Trump said that using military force to extract more concessions from Tehran would be counterproductive. There was also criticism from hard-line Iranian circles, who described the conflict as a "imposed war" and compared it to the 1980-1988 conflict with Saddam Hussein's Iraq. However, the speaker of parliament and chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said the agreement represented a "failure" for the United States, while President Massoud Pezeshkian called it "historic", Le Monde noted.