New Delhi:
The US and Iran are set to begin a new round of negotiations in Switzerland today, with President Donald Trump warning he would impose tolls on the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important oil and gas shipping lanes, if talks fail.
The US delegation will be led by Vice President JD Vance, who had on Thursday cancelled his trip to Switzerland after Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah exchanged deadly strikes in Lebanon, threatening the deal signed this week to end the Middle East war that began on February 28. He will be accompanied by Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are heading Tehran’s delegation, which reportedly also includes senior security, central bank and oil officials.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (centre L) and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (centre R) after they arrived in Pakistan for talks with the US on April 11, 2026
Photo Credit: AFP
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, will also be in attendance at the Burgenstock resort in the tiny Swiss village of Obburgen. Mediators from Qatar will also be present.
Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday signed a 14-point deal to end the war. The agreement provides for an immediate cessation of military operations, including in Lebanon, and commits both countries to pursuing a final agreement within 60 days.
Hormuz, Lebanon “Big” Issues”
Before boarding his flight to Switzerland, JD Vance said he hoped to “make progress” on the nuclear and Lebanon ceasefire issues.
“I can only be there for a day or two. I think we’re going to hopefully make progress on the nuclear issue, make progress on the Lebanon ceasefire issue. Those are the two big things that I think we’re to be focused on,” he told reporters before departing from Joint Base Andrews.
.@VP departs for Switzerland: “I’m looking forward to starting the technical talks with the Iranians, the Pakistanis, and the Qataris… We’re going to hopefully make progress on the nuclear issue, make progress on the Lebanon ceasefire issue — those are the two big things that I… pic.twitter.com/4VXp0ANgJU
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) June 20, 2026
ALSO READ | ‘No Press Freedom’: JD Vance Blames Pak For Delay In Releasing Iran Agreement
US negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff were already there handling “some of the technical elements” and had reported that “things are going well,” he said in an interview earlier on Saturday.
Vance had earlier led the American delegation to Pakistan for talks with Iran in April but had failed to get a breakthrough.
Trump Warns Of Tolls On Hormuz If Talks Fail
Donald Trump has warned that the US could impose its own tolls on Hormuz if negotiators fail to complete the deal.
“There will be NO TOLLS in the Hormuz Strait for 60 days during the Cease Fire Period, and there will be NO TOLLS after the 60 day period has expired, unless they are imposed by and for the United States of America, should the deal not be completed, for services rendered as the Guardian Angel to the countries of the Middle East for purposes of both past, present, and future reimbursement of costs,” he wrote on Truth Social.
“There will be NO TOLLS in the Hormuz Strait for 60 days during the Cease Fire Period, and there will be NO TOLLS after the 60 day period has expired, unless they are imposed by and for the United States of America…” – President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/js9NpwE4M0
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 20, 2026
ALSO READ | US-Iran Sign Deal To End War. Read Full Text Of 14-Point Agreement
His post came hours after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Saturday said Hormuz was shut, citing Israeli “crimes” in Lebanon that violated US commitments to a ceasefire. It also warned that ships would be at risk if they approached Hormuz.
The US, however, rejected the claim.
“Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz. Traffic continues to flow, and US forces are monitoring the situation to ensure this remains the case,” a spokesperson for US Central Command said.
The US military said that 55 merchant ships transited Saturday with more than 17 million barrels of oil.
Israel, Hezbollah Exchange Strikes
At least 20 people were killed by Israeli strikes in Lebanon on Saturday, hours after a ceasefire took effect there. An Israeli military official said that Hezbollah had fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight. Israel’s army said that it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets and militants.
Photo Credit: Reuters
Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war on March 2 when Hezbollah, which is the most prominent actor in the so-called axis of resistance — regional pro-Tehran armed groups opposed to Israel — fired rockets towards Israel to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The two sides have been exchanging strikes since then, despite a truce in April, leaving more than 4,000 people dead and displacing millions.
Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, accused the US of failing to implement the first clause of its 14-point interim deal with Iran, which includes a ceasefire “on all fronts”, including Lebanon. He said that, as long as the agreement was only on paper, the flow of Middle East energy would remain halted.
