“Talks between Iran and the United States in Switzerland have been postponed due to Israel’s series of deadly airstrikes in southern Lebanon, three sources familiar with the matter said.” The Financial Times reports it. Iran did not send a delegation to Switzerland for nuclear talks because of the attacks, the sources said. “The Iranians have asked for guarantees that hostilities in Lebanon will cease, as stipulated in the signed agreement, and mediators are currently working to resolve the issue,” a diplomat familiar with the matter said.
Israeli attacks on Beirut have repeatedly threatened to derail negotiations between the United States and Iran, with US President Donald Trump openly expressing frustration at Israel’s insistence on continuing its offensive, the City newspaper notes. Iran has held firm to its “no Lebanon, no deal” position, a second source familiar with the negotiations said, adding that Tehran believes it has the upper hand and can extract concessions from Washington over Israel’s war on Lebanon.
According to the first diplomat, the message from the Iranians was: “We have restrained Hezbollah, the United States cannot restrain Israel. Until they do so, we will not show up.” Two of the sources said the talks had been provisionally rescheduled for Monday, but that this depended on the situation in Lebanon. A third source said the length of the postponement still remained to be confirmed.