American and Iranian negotiators sat down at the Burgenstock resort in Switzerland on Sunday for the first round of talks under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, and simultaneously, from Washington, Donald Trump was threatening to wipe Iran off the map.

As Vice President JD Vance spoke of turning over a new leaf with Tehran, Trump issued some of his most explicit threats yet against Iran, warning of devastating military action, demanding Tehran rein in Hezbollah and vowing that the Islamic Republic would cease to exist if it closed the Strait of Hormuz.

"You close it, and you won't have a country," Trump said of the strategic waterway through which a significant share of the world's oil shipments pass. He went further: "You won't even make it back to your f***ing country," Trump said, as per Fox News.

Taking over the strait, and charging tolls

Trump did not stop at threats. He asserted that Washington could take direct control of the Strait of Hormuz if negotiations collapse. "We may take over the Strait, if we have to. If they don't make a deal, we'll collect tolls," he said. Under such a system, he added, vessels transiting the strait could be charged a toll equivalent to 20% of the value of their oil cargoes.

Trump framed the toll proposal as compensation for the billions the US has spent protecting regional shipping lanes. He portrayed the American military as a "Guardian Angel" for countries across West Asia, arguing Washington deserved to be reimbursed for its role in securing one of the world's most critical energy routes.

What was actually happening in Switzerland

The US delegation was led by Vance and included special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff. Iran was represented by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Field Marshal Asim Munir and Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani were also part of the quadrilateral talks.

Vance sought to project a different tone from the negotiating table. "What the president has asked us to do is turn over a new leaf to transform our relationship with the people of Iran," he said after the talks. He acknowledged that efforts to end hostilities in Lebanon remained complicated. "These things are always a little bit messy," he said.

The Lebanon problem

The talks were further complicated by the situation in Lebanon. Trump separately threatened to strike Iran again over Hezbollah's actions. "Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble," he wrote on Truth Social. "If they don't we'll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!!!"

Despite a ceasefire announcement in Lebanon on Friday, hostilities have continued. Tehran reimposed restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in response, insisting the US had failed to ensure an end to Israeli military operations in the country.

Iran holds the line

Iran has made its position clear: there will be no movement to broader negotiations, including on the nuclear programme, until Lebanon stabilises and promised economic benefits begin to materialise. "There will be no talks on other topics as long as the situation in Lebanon is not resolved," Iranian negotiator Mehdi Ghorbanzadeh told state broadcaster IRIB.

Tehran is also demanding that Washington honour commitments in the MoU, including sanctions waivers and the release of frozen Iranian assets. Sunday's discussions, Iranian officials said, focused primarily on implementing those existing commitments rather than tackling larger strategic questions.

Published on: Jun 22, 2026 7:41 AM IST