US Vice President JD Vance said "great progress" has already been made at talks between US and Iranian officials in Switzerland aimed at hammering out a long-term peace deal.
"What the president has asked us to do is turn over a new leaf to transform our relationship with the people of Iran," Vance said in the mountain resort of Bürgenstock, where the talks kicked off just hours earlier on Sunday.
"We've already made great progress over just the last few hours, and I expect that we'll make additional progress," the US vice president said.
The talks began on Sunday afternoon on the shore of Lake Lucerne. According to the Foreign Ministry of Qatar, which is mediating between the warring countries alongside Pakistan, the initial high-level meeting involved representatives from the US and Iran as well as delegations from Pakistan and Qatar.
Qatar said there was hope that the meetings would lead to a "comprehensive and lasting agreement on all points within the framework agreement," referring to a memorandum of understanding signed earlier this week by Washington and Tehran that paved the way for the talks in Switzerland.
Under the terms of the memorandum, a final agreement on ending hostilities, as well as on Iran's nuclear programme, is to be reached within 60 days.
However, the talks have been overshadowed by ongoing clashes between Israeli forces and the Hezbollah armed group in Lebanon, despite a ceasefire that is part of the memorandum.
