The Swiss foreign ministry confirmed on Friday that the planned talks between the United States, Iran, Qatar and Pakistan at the Bürgenstock resort would not take place, hours after the White House announced Vice President JD Vance had cancelled his departure. A White House spokesperson said the logistics of the negotiations had never been simple or predictable, and that the US delegation remained ready to travel at the first opportunity. Iranian media reported that Tehran’s delegation had also suspended its trip; the pan-Arab channel Al-Mayadeen, which is aligned with Hezbollah, indicated the decision was linked to Israel’s continued air strikes on southern Lebanon. The cancellation leaves the implementation of the 14-point memorandum of understanding, signed electronically by Presidents Donald Trump and Masoud Pezeshkian on 18 June, in procedural uncertainty.

According to the White House, the United States looks forward to beginning technical talks as soon as possible. The semi-official Iranian Tasnim agency, however, stated that negotiators first needed to see signs of US implementation of the interim deal, and the foreign ministry in Tehran had already questioned the necessity of a formal signing ceremony after the remote signatures. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, in a written message, said he had approved the memorandum despite personal reservations, emphasising that future face-to-face negotiations did not imply acceptance of the adversary’s viewpoint. Israel, which was not a party to the accord, launched overnight raids that killed at least 16 people in southern Lebanon; the Israeli military said it was responding to Hezbollah violations of the ceasefire. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israeli forces would remain in a security zone in southern Lebanon as long as required, directly contradicting the memorandum’s call for a permanent end to military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon.

Despite the diplomatic delay, initial steps of the agreement have begun. The US military lifted its naval blockade of Iranian ports, and the Strait of Hormuz saw the passage of Saudi oil tankers and a French LNG carrier, though all vessels must now submit requests to a new Iranian government body, which will not charge fees during the 60-day negotiation window. Oil prices continued to decline, approaching pre-war levels. Vice President Vance confirmed that the 60-day countdown for broader negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme started on 18 June, and that Washington would seek to limit Iran’s long-range missiles. The Pentagon, meanwhile, informed Congress it needed approximately $80 billion to cover the costs of the conflict and related expenses, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The war, launched on 28 February with US and Israeli air strikes on Iran, has killed more than 7,000 people and caused what the International Energy Agency described as the largest disruption ever to global oil markets. The memorandum provides for sanctions relief, the unfreezing of tens of billions of dollars in Iranian assets, and a $300 billion reconstruction fund, drawing criticism from some Republican lawmakers in Washington who argue the terms are too favourable to Tehran. President Trump, in an interview with Axios, characterised the deal as “probably an unconditional surrender” by Iran and asserted that his power had no limits. Switzerland stated it remains ready to facilitate the talks and that preparatory work continues. No new date has been set, and the dossier now hinges on whether technical discussions can begin before the 60-day deadline expires on 17 August, with the situation in Lebanon emerging as a critical variable.