WorldVice President JD Vance said Monday peace talks with Iran created a "good foundation for a successful final deal" to end the war that began at the end of February.Officials wrapped up lengthy round of initial talks Monday aimed at solidifying lasting dealThe Associated Press · Posted: Jun 22, 2026 6:16 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoListen to this articleEstimated 5 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaks to members of the media before boarding Air Force Two, after the U.S. and Iran held high-level talks at the Lake Lucerne Summit, at Emmen Military Air Base, in Emmen, Switzerland on Monday. (Nathan Howard/Reuters/Pool)Vice-President JD Vance said Monday that peace talks with Iran created a "good foundation for a successful final deal" to end the war that began at the end of February."The final deal is the house," Vance told reporters. "We set the foundation. We haven't built the house, but we've laid a successful foundation to get to a good place for the American people."Vance's comments came after he and Iran's parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf on Monday wrapped up a lengthy round of initial talks aimed at solidifying a permanent end to the war between the countries. The vice-president also suggested that the U.S. administration could agree to unfreeze Iranian assets for purchases of American soy, corn and wheat.The mediation effort in Switzerland, which started Sunday and stretched into the early hours of Monday, had rocky moments. But the talks also led to some agreements between the two sides. In a joint statement, mediators Pakistan and Qatar said that while the high-level engagement had ended, technical negotiations would continue in Switzerland this week.The mediators hailed what they called "encouraging progress" made during the talks. A senior U.S. diplomat claimed progress on multiple fronts, including the establishment of "mechanisms" to ensure the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for global energy shipments, remains open and that a ceasefire in the fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon holds. Yet the first full day of talks was jolted by blistering statements from U.S. President Donald Trump, who from thousands of miles away from the Swiss negotiating venue at a mountainside resort near Lake Lucerne was firing off comments that offended the Iranians. Iranian state media said talks had paused after the "publication of an insulting message by the U.S. president."Ultimately, the Iranians remained on site and negotiations continued, according to the senior U.S. diplomat, who was not authorized to comment publicly and briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity.Iranian state television reported Monday that the Iranian delegation had left the summit site to head to the airport in Zurich to fly back to Tehran.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had vowed to "never back down from the right to enrich uranium," according to state media, and Trump later told Fox News in a phone interview that Pezeshkian should watch what he says and also threatened to take over Iran, according to one of the news channel's correspondents.Trump fires off warnings on social mediaTrump issued warnings against Iran on social media, posting as negotiators worked: "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!!!"The chief negotiators for the U.S. include Vance, as well as special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law. Iran is represented by Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. It's unclear when Vance will depart Switzerland, although he told Fox News in an interview Saturday that he anticipated staying only a "day or two." Kushner and Witkoff are handling much of the technical details on behalf of the U.S. delegation.WATCH | Negotiators for the U.S. and Iran begin talks in Switzerland:Vance meets Iranians for peace talks as Trump issues new threats10 hours ago|Duration 2:50U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Iran with fresh strikes as Vice-President JD Vance and an American delegation met with Iranian officials in Switzerland to push forward on an interim peace deal.In a joint statement, Pakistan and Qatar said the high-level talks had ended and that technical negotiations would continue in Switzerland for the rest of the week. They said they had agreed to a "communication line" to ensure safe passage of ships in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as a mechanism to bring about an end to the fighting between Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon.The U.S. offered no immediate comment, while Iran praised the meditators' work. Araghchi wrote on X that Pakistani and Qatari mediators delivered "major progress to end the Lebanon War." He added that the first "real test" of negotiations would be whether the mechanism succeeded in halting the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. The senior U.S. diplomat said among the issues discussed was Iran's messaging as it related to the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran's military said it closed Saturday in response to continued fighting in Lebanon. U.S. Central Command has disputed that Iran closed the strait again.Mourners attend the funeral of four women after an Israeli strike on Saturday on the village of Qennarit, in southern Lebanon on Sunday. (Aziz Taher/Reuters)The interim deal to end the fighting in Iran, signed last week by U.S. and Iranian leaders, outlines a 60-day period for negotiators to settle the future of Tehran's nuclear program amid concerns that it wants to use it for military purposes, which Iran denies. The fate of frozen Iranian assets, among other thorny issues, is also on the agenda. Though the talks will encompass a vast array of complex matters, Iran first wants to focus on addressing the fighting in Lebanon.Saturday's renewed ceasefire in Lebanon appeared to be holding, and Israel's military said it would lift movement restrictions for residents near the Israel-Lebanon border on Monday morning. Neither Israel nor Hezbollah is a signatory to the U.S.-Iran deal.There was cautious calm Monday in Lebanon, with no Israeli strikes reported overnight after a day of quiet Sunday. Hezbollah likewise has not announced any attacks on Israeli forces since Saturday. The lull in fighting in Lebanon is the longest since the outbreak of the latest Israel-Hezbollah war on March 2.