June 21, 2026, 01:23June 21, 2026, 01:23
On the Bürgenstock NW, diplomats are currently trying to make negotiations between the USA and Iran possible. Both nations have sent their delegations to Switzerland.
Switzerland offers diplomats from several countries at the Bürgenstock a “discrete and reliable framework” to maintain dialogue, the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (EDA) announced on Saturday. The FDFA did not provide any information about the diplomats present.
United States Vice President JD Vance confirmed on Saturday that special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have arrived in Switzerland for talks with the Iranian delegation.
Vance himself also set off for Switzerland on Saturday, after hours before there had been uncertainty about the schedule. “I think we will hopefully make progress on the nuclear issue and also make progress on the issue of the ceasefire in Lebanon,” he said before departure.
JD Vance set off for Switzerland on Saturday evening. Image: keystone
For his part, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei confirmed that an Iranian delegation would travel to Switzerland. According to state television, the Iranian delegation included Ghalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and the governor of the central bank, Abdolnaser Hemmati.
Baghaei emphasized to the Iranian Fars news agency that “the other side must take the necessary measures as quickly as possible, otherwise the entire agreement will be jeopardized.”
Iran wants to close Strait of Hormuz
Iran has already announced that it wants to close the Strait of Hormuz to all ships again. The country’s central military command justified the move by violating the ceasefire in southern Lebanon, which was agreed in the framework agreement between the USA and Iran.
According to the statement, the Israeli military presence in southern Lebanon is also a reason for the blockade. This is not part of the framework agreement. The military command threatened further measures if Israel’s army continued fighting in Lebanon.
The US military announced that it would continue to enforce freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. According to the Central Command of the US Armed Forces, the military remains on site to ensure that all agreements in the framework agreement “are adhered to, followed and implemented to the fullest extent”.
Pakistan is mediating in Iran
A first round of talks scheduled for Friday did not take place because of attacks between the Israeli army and the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.
To discuss the continuation of the negotiations, Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi traveled to Iran. Meetings were planned there with the Iranian parliament speaker Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
According to Pakistan, talks between Iran and the USA will be held in Switzerland on Sunday. These would be held at a technical level in Bürgenstock, according to a communiqué from the Pakistani Foreign Ministry.
Discussions were actually supposed to take place here on Friday.Image: keystone
Representatives of the United States, Iran and mediators from Pakistan and Qatar would take part in the talks, it said. Islamabad will continue to support the process as a mediator to deepen the understandings reached in the framework agreement. According to the Italian news agency Askanews, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and army chief Asim Muni are scheduled to take part in Pakistan.
For its part, the canton of Nidwalden announced on Saturday that it was also informed about the presence of diplomats from various countries on the Bürgenstock. The Nidwalden cantonal authorities specified that their security mandate continued and that the measures would be maintained.
Violent attacks in southern Lebanon
Despite the agreed ceasefire, Lebanese media continued to report numerous Israeli air strikes on Saturday, leaving at least 28 dead. The Lebanese Civil Defense said 16 bodies had been recovered in the city of Nabatija alone.
At least seven people were killed in an attack on the city of Qennarit, according to the Ministry of Health. There were further deaths in attacks on Arabsalim and in the Tire area. According to the Lebanese army, a military member also died. The army accused Israel of using the attacks to prevent any solution to restore stability.
Mutual blame
The Israeli army and Hezbollah blamed each other for the fighting. The Israeli army accused Hezbollah of firing more than 50 projectiles at soldiers during the night. Rocket sites, weapons depots and militia command centers were then attacked. We will continue to take action against any threat in the future.
Hezbollah, however, said it had responded to an advance by Israeli troops. They are sticking to the ceasefire, but will oppose any attempt to conquer further land. According to a US government official, the ceasefire has been in effect since Friday 4 p.m. local time. It was broken several times just a few minutes after it came into force. (sda/dpa/adnkronos)