Negotiations between Iran and the United States in Switzerland were thrown into disarray on Sunday after Tehran’s delegation suspended participation, citing threats issued by US President Donald Trump as a “blatant violation” of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding signed earlier this week.
The talks, held in Burgenstock under Qatari and Pakistani mediation, marked the first formal engagement between Washington and Tehran since the memorandum’s signing.
According to Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, negotiators walked out after Trump warned on Truth Social that Iran must halt its “highly paid proxies in Lebanon” or face harsher US strikes.
Trump escalated further in a Fox News interview, threatening to “take over” the Strait of Hormuz and impose tolls on oil traffic if Tehran refused concessions.
He also targeted Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian over uranium enrichment, warning, “He better shape up or we’ll take over the rest of the country.”
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf dismissed the threats, declaring that Tehran “does not give any weight to American threats” and warning Washington to “be careful in their statements.”
Al Mayadeen reported that Iran has set new conditions before returning to the table: a formal apology from Trump and an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
The demand marks a sharp escalation from earlier calls to end Israeli attacks.
The dispute has plunged the four-party talks into uncertainty, with mediators Qatar and Pakistan left scrambling to salvage the process.
No announcement has been made on whether negotiations will resume. # (ZIA LUNA)
