Trump threatens Iran as Switzerland talks open over Lebanon and Hormuz

Washington,UPDATED: Jun 22, 2026 03:22 IST

US President Donald Trump kept up his threats against Iran on Sunday even as talks began in Switzerland on the next steps in the interim agreement signed last week to end the war. The US delegation is led by Vice President J D Vance and includes Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, while Iran is represented by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Pakistan and Qatar are mediating the talks.

The talks opened amid tensions over Lebanon, the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's nuclear programme. Tehran said on the eve of the talks that it had again closed the Strait of Hormuz over Israel's ongoing military campaign in Lebanon against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group. The interim deal is meant to stop fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon, and Iran has said that issue must be addressed first.

The US has said shipping traffic through the key waterway is continuing. Trump has also threatened to impose American tolls in the strait if a final deal with Iran is not reached within 60 days. Other issues under discussion include the unfreezing of billions of dollars in Iranian assets and Iran's nuclear programme. Members of the Iranian delegation told their media that Sunday's talks were mainly focused on Lebanon, but also covered frozen assets and Iran's oil exports. Hamid Bovard, chief executive of the Iranian Oil Co and a member of the delegation, said lifting oil-related sanctions and the related waivers was pursued in the negotiations.

In Jerusalem, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brushed aside criticism that the war had fallen short of its goals and said he believed the Iranian government would collapse because of the military campaign. "I think we created the conditions for its future fall," Netanyahu told the JNS Policy Summit. He added: "That is what will be the real triumph, when the Iranian people take their own destiny in their hands, and they knock out this brutal regime that is terrorising them and terrorising the rest of the world."

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said Syria had no desire to intervene militarily in Lebanon, despite Trump's remarks suggesting Syria could help "take care of Hezbollah". In an interview with the UAE network Al Mashhad, al-Sharaa said Trump's remarks had been "misunderstood". He said Trump "spoke about Syria's role in finding a safe and peaceful solution, but the statement was misinterpreted as if Syria were going to invade Lebanon tomorrow morning".

Israel's military said residents in the north near the Lebanon border would be able to move freely without restrictions from Monday morning after months of curbs because of the threat of attack by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. The military did not say what prompted the decision, but noted that a fragile ceasefire is in place. Even so, Netanyahu has said Israeli forces will remain in southern Lebanon. Separately, Israel said it killed Zaki Youssef Mahmoud Abu Mustafa, an Islamic Jihad commander in Gaza whom it accused of rebuilding the group in violation of the ceasefire and of taking 12-year-old Yagil Yaakov hostage during the October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel. Nasser hospital said he was killed in a strike in Muwasi that wounded five other people, including four children.

Iran's state-run IRNA news agency said the talks had entered a "difficult phase" after what it called an "insulting" statement by Trump, without specifying which remark it meant. Trump made several warnings to Iran on Sunday, including saying he could "hit Iran very hard again". Even so, an official familiar with the talks told The Associated Press that the Iranian delegation remained engaged and had not signalled to the mediators that it planned to leave, as the negotiations continued against the backdrop of fighting in Lebanon, disputes over shipping and pressure over sanctions and nuclear issues.

With PTI Inputs

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