Vance Meets Iranian Negotiators in Switzerland; Says There’s a Chance to “Turn Over a New Leaf”
US Vice President JD Vance said Sunday there was an opportunity to “turn over a new leaf” with Iran as the sides launched a new round of talks in Obbürgen, Switzerland. Vance is leading the US delegation; Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf heads the Iranian side. The talks aim to shore up the interim deal to end the war; Lebanon is top of the agenda. The talks resumption follows the Friday postponement triggered by Israeli Lebanon operations and the Witkoff-mediated Saturday ceasefire commitment. Conflicting accounts emerge as Ghalibaf says the US should be careful with its statements.
The Vance “turn over a new leaf” framing is the structural Trump-administration diplomatic-channel positioning ahead of the substantive talks. The Ghalibaf delegation is materially senior: Parliament Speaker plus IRGC-aligned negotiators position the Iranian side for hard-bargaining on the Lebanon-track question. The Witkoff Saturday-afternoon Israeli ceasefire commitment — with Israeli troops remaining in southern Lebanon — is the structural compromise that enabled the Sunday resumption. The Saudi-led six-state regional alignment continues to back the framework architecture. The first 30-day compliance window for sanctions-waiver operationalisation continues; the Switzerland talks are the structural durability test.