Describing Iran's leadership as fractured and difficult to navigate, US Vice-President JD Vance on Wednesday (local time) said talks with Tehran would be a complex process that would be "messy" and "take some time" to reach a resolution, while asserting that Washington would use military, economic and diplomatic tools to secure a favourable outcome.
In an interview with Fox News, amid renewed diplomatic engagements with Iran after a pause to hostilities following the collapse of the 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Vance said divisions within Iran's leadership have complicated efforts to resolve, with some factions seeking an end to the conflict while others remain committed to continuing hostilities.
"The Iranians are extraordinarily difficult people. Number two, they have a fractured system. So there are people within their system who want the war to be over; there are also people within their system who are crazy radicals who want the war to continue," Vance told Fox News.
"Our job is to navigate through that and get the best outcome for the American people, but for the President of the United States as well," he added.
Vance said any eventual agreement with Iran would not come quickly but expressed confidence that the United States would achieve its objectives.
"And I do think that where we will ultimately land--it's going to be messy and it's going to take some time to get there--where we will ultimately land, you see, oil, I think, was at $79 today. Those oil prices are going to come down and stay down. Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, and the United States will be in a stronger position," he said.
The Vice-President cautioned against drawing conclusions about the outcome of the negotiations while discussions remain ongoing.
However, he said that the Donald Trump-led administration would continue to rely on multiple avenues, including military pressure, economic measures and diplomacy, to achieve its goals.
"But we're kind of in the middle of the game, and I think people are trying to prejudge exactly how this is going to go," Vance said.
"I can tell you with confidence it's going to go in a place that is good for the United States of America. But we're going to use all the tools that we have--military, economic, and diplomatic--to make sure we bring this thing to the right resolution," the US Vice-President added.
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump said that "a lot of progress" had been made in negotiations with Iran and claimed that the Islamic Republic had reached out seeking talks.
He added that the situation would become clearer within the next 48 hours, "We're moving along very nicely. We'll find out. We'll know in 48 hours, I would say," Trump told reporters as he departed Los Angeles for Las Vegas as part of a two-day West Coast trip.
Trump said that Iranian officials had contacted the US and expressed an interest in talks, while suggesting that Tehran would be "very smart" to reach a deal.
"A lot of progress has been made. They called me, and they said, 'Please, let's talk.' They want to talk. The funny thing is, they never mention that... I think they'd be very smart to make a deal. We'll see what happens," he added.
Trump's remarks come amid uncertainty over the possibility of a renewed US-Iran agreement aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz after the collapse of the MoU signed in June to end the hostilities in the region.
Source: ANI
--Agencies
