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United States President Donald Trump has threatened to strike Iran over its support for Hezbollah.
The threat has cast uncertainty over the opening of high-stakes negotiations aimed at turning a fragile ceasefire into a longer-term peace agreement.
The warning came as senior US and Iranian officials gathered in Switzerland for the first round of talks aimed at building on a preliminary memorandum of understanding reached last week to end months of regional conflict.
Posting on Truth Social as negotiations got underway, Trump said Iran must "immediately stop their highly paid proxies in Lebanon from causing trouble".
"If they don’t, we’ll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!!!" he wrote.
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Iran responded swiftly with chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warning the US to "be careful" with its language, saying Iran's armed forces were prepared to respond and insisting US threats had failed to alter Iran's position.
The heightened rhetoric briefly fuelled speculation that the negotiations could unravel before substantive discussions had begun.
Iranian state media reported Iran's delegation had left the venue in response to Trump's comments, with some outlets suggesting the talks had been suspended.
But that account was later called into question when a diplomat familiar with the negotiations told Agence France-Presse the Iranian delegation remained engaged and had not indicated to mediators any intention to withdraw.
The negotiations, mediated by Pakistan and Qatar at the Swiss resort of Bürgenstock, are intended to launch a 60-day process to negotiate a more permanent settlement and ease tensions across the region.
But events in Lebanon quickly emerged as the most immediate obstacle.
Iran said continued Israeli military activity and the implementation of commitments in Lebanon would dominate the opening round of talks.
The preliminary agreement signed last week committed both sides to ending hostilities across multiple fronts, including between Israel and Hezbollah.
Yet repeated clashes in southern Lebanon have raised doubts over whether that framework can hold.
Iran has insisted that meaningful progress towards a final agreement cannot happen while fighting continues.
The uncertainty around Lebanon was further complicated by comments from Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who publicly rejected suggestions his country could play a military role in the conflict.
Speaking to broadcaster Al Mashhad, Sharaa said Syria was focused on restoring economic ties and regional stability rather than intervening militarily.
"We are looking for economic channels between Lebanon and Syria, not military ones," he said.
His remarks came after Trump suggested Israel may struggle to contain Hezbollah and floated the possibility Syria could become more directly involved.
Sharaa said Syria had instead proposed to the US that the fighting stop and be replaced with economic, political and security arrangements acceptable to both Lebanon and Syria.
The comments highlight how Lebanon has emerged as a key test for negotiations, with regional actors increasingly weighing in on what a post-conflict order could look like while trying to avoid being drawn further into the fighting.
US vice president JD Vance struck a more conciliatory tone at the opening of talks, describing the meeting as "historic" and presenting it as an opportunity to reshape relations between Washington and Tehran.
"Can we turn over a new leaf?" he said.
"Can we change relations in the Middle East permanently?"
Vance said the US was prepared to fundamentally transform its relationship with Iran if it moved away from regional instability and abandoned any long-term nuclear weapons ambitions.
But some of the most contentious issues remain unresolved.
Iranian officials said the country's nuclear program was not discussed during the first round of talks, although President Masoud Pezeshkian reiterated Iran would not surrender its right to enrich uranium.
Iran has also flagged access to frozen overseas assets and oil export approvals as priorities in future discussions.
— With additional reporting by Agence France-Presse.
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4 min read
Published
Updated
By Mikele Syron
Source: SBS News
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