WANA (Jun 21) – The four-party meeting between Iran, the United States, Qatar, and Pakistan, titled the Lake Lucerne Meeting, has begun in Switzerland.

 

The talks opened on Sunday afternoon, June 21, in Bürgenstock, Switzerland, with delegations from Iran, the United States, Qatar, and Pakistan participating.

 

The Iranian delegation is headed by Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, while the U.S. delegation is led by Vice President J.D. Vance. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir, along with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, are leading the Pakistani and Qatari delegations, respectively, serving as mediators and facilitators of the negotiations.

 

Speaking on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the talks would take place over a single day. He noted that bilateral meetings with the Pakistani and Qatari delegations would be held in the morning, followed in the afternoon by a four-party session involving the Iranian and U.S. delegations in the presence of Qatari and Pakistani representatives.

 

Baghaei said the meeting demonstrates Iran’s seriousness in demanding and pursuing the implementation of the other side’s commitments. He stated that Iran did not intend to sign a document and simply expect it to be implemented automatically.

 

According to him, Article 13 of the memorandum of understanding clearly stipulates that negotiations toward a final agreement are conditional upon the implementation of five specific provisions — Articles 1, 4, 5, 10, and 11. He said Article 1, which concerns the cessation of war on all fronts, including Lebanon, has not been implemented, and that the United States has either been unable or unwilling to ensure compliance, while Israel continues to violate its commitments. Baghaei said this issue would be the main subject of Sunday’s discussions.

 

The Iranian delegation, led by Ghalibaf, includes Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati, Deputy Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Bagheri, Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi, Deputy for Economic Diplomacy Hamid Qanbari, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei, and Deputy Oil Minister and National Iranian Oil Company CEO Hamid Bovard. The delegation arrived in Zurich on Saturday before traveling to Bürgenstock, the venue for the talks.

 

Earlier on Sunday, the Qatari and Pakistani delegations held separate meetings with the Iranian delegation. Araghchi also met and held talks with Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir also met with U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance. Reports have also emerged regarding a trilateral meeting involving Iran, Qatar, and the United States.

 

The U.S. delegation includes Vice President J.D. Vance, Steve Witkoff, representative of President Donald Trump, and Jared Kushner, an adviser to Trump. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir traveled to Switzerland for the talks, while Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who had arrived earlier, is also participating.

 

Ahead of the meeting, Vance stated: “The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the end of Iran’s nuclear program are matters that have already been achieved. The question now is how much more we can accomplish together.”

 

The first round of Iran-U.S. negotiations began on April 11 in Islamabad, chaired by Ghalibaf and Vance and mediated by Pakistan. The talks lasted 21 hours and ended early the following day without agreement due to what Iranian officials described as excessive U.S. demands.

 

Following consultations over the subsequent two months, the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between Iran and the United States was finalized with Pakistani mediation in the early hours of June 15. The memorandum was then digitally signed on June 18 by U.S. President Donald Trump, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.