The negotiations scheduled for June 19 between the US and Iran at the Swiss resort of Bürgenstock have been 'postponed.' The parties could not agree on the terms of the meeting, although the delegations were ready to depart.
Negotiations between the US and Iran regarding a comprehensive peace agreement, scheduled for Friday, June 19, in Bürgenstock, Switzerland, near Lucerne, will not take place, the Swiss Foreign Ministry reported on the morning of the same day. The parties were supposed to discuss the terms of a permanent ceasefire during the meeting.
In a statement from the Foreign Ministry, quoted by AFP, it was said that the negotiations have been "postponed." It was also noted that Switzerland "remains ready to facilitate these negotiations, and the relevant preparatory work is ongoing."
The Resort Prepared for Negotiations
Until late on June 18, the Swiss side hoped that the negotiations in Bürgenstock would at least begin at a technical level. Representatives from not only the US and Iran but also from intermediary countries - Qatar and Pakistan - were expected there. The hotel complex on the mountain by Lake Vierwaldstätter is owned by a subsidiary of the Qatari sovereign fund.
Guests who had booked rooms in the five- and four-star hotels of the complex were asked to leave. They were accommodated in other hotels in the region.
Statement from the White House
US Vice President Jay D. Vance had already canceled his participation in the meeting near Lucerne the day before. It was planned that he would discuss the implementation of the 14-point framework agreement with Iranian negotiators, a White House representative reported on the evening of June 18.
Vance and the American delegation were ready to fly to Switzerland as soon as the negotiation plans were finalized. However, a representative of the US administration noted that the logistics of these negotiations had never been simple or predictable.
Iranian Side Set Conditions
The Iranian government has not yet responded to the cancellation of the negotiations. Tehran expressed readiness for technical negotiations after the US and Iran extended the fragile ceasefire for at least 60 days under the framework agreement.
However, the semi-official Iranian agency Tasnim reported on June 18 that before the next rounds of negotiations begin, Iranian negotiators want to see signs of compliance with the memorandum from the US side. The agency also noted that there is no confirmation of the Iranian delegation's departure to Geneva either.
On June 15, US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a framework agreement that extends the ceasefire declared in April and provides, among other things, for the opening of the blocked Strait of Hormuz. A deadline of 60 days was set for subsequent negotiations.
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