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Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran on a wide-ranging nuclear and sanctions relief deal are off to a slow start.
Technical talks scheduled for this weekend were delayed on Thursday evening, with the White House saying in a statement, “the logistics of these negotiations have never been simple or predictable.”
Fighting erupted in Lebanon overnight after the Israeli military said four of its soldiers were killed in an attack. Lebanese health officials said 16 people were killed as Israel launched retaliatory strikes.
The clock is ticking on the 60-day period for the U.S. and Iran to negotiate the terms of a deal on Iran’s nuclear program, after President Trump signed a framework agreement on Wednesday.
Vice President Vance cautioned during a White House briefing on Thursday that he was still uncertain about the timing of his trip to begin those talks.
“We think these technical negotiations start sometime this weekend,” he said in the afternoon. “That’s still the plan. But that could change.”
The decision to cancel this trip followed a report from an outlet allied with Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah that Iran would delay its participation in the talks due to Israel’s ongoing strikes against Lebanon. Iran has insisted that its ceasefire with the U.S. remains contingent on a halt in fighting between U.S.-allied Israel and Lebanon.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a Friday morning statement shared on social media that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) struck Hezbollah on Thursday evening and Friday morning “with force” following a “heinous attack” from the militant group.
“My directive is clear: Israel will not tolerate attacks on our soldiers or our territory, and it will exact a very heavy price from Hezbollah for these attacks,” Netanyahu wrote. “The IDF will act to thwart any threat to our forces and our territory.”
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, appeared to confirm that Iran will participate in these talks in a Thursday evening statement shared on social media.
“However, it’s self-evident that the in-person negotiations in the future will not mean acceptance of the enemy’s position,” he wrote.
The two-month timeline for a nuclear deal can be extended if both sides agree, and President Trump has already said it’s not a “hard” deadline.
“I don’t view it as hard,” he told reporters on Wednesday. “Just as long as they’re behaving, I really don’t care that much.
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