US Vice President JD Vance has said that President Donald Trump is pursuing a sweeping agreement with Iran rather than a narrower deal.
Speaking at an event in the US state of Georgia on Tuesday, Vance described ongoing negotiations as part of a broader strategy tied to a fragile ceasefire that has been in place for nearly a week.
"What's interesting about this is that we have this ceasefire that's in place. I think it's six or seven days old right now. The ceasefire is holding," he said.
Vance said Trump does not want to make "a small deal."
"He wants to make the grand bargain. And what he's basically offering to Iran is very simple...He said that 'if you're willing to act like a normal country, we are willing to treat you economically like a normal country.' He doesn't want a small deal," he added.
Vance noted that a final agreement has not yet been reached.
"The reason why the deal is not yet done is because the president, he really wants a deal where Iran doesn't have a nuclear weapon," he said.
Vance added that negotiations would continue, expressing optimism about the potential global impact of a successful agreement.
"We're going to keep on negotiating and try to make it happen, because it would be great for the world. It'd be great for our country, it'd be great for everybody. So I'm going to keep on fighting to make it happen," he said.
Negotiating in good faith
Vance said there is "a lot of mistrust" between Iran and the US.
"You're not going to solve that problem overnight. But yeah, I think the people we're sitting across from wanted to make a deal, and I know the president of the United States told us to go out there and negotiate in good faith. That's what we did. That's what we're going to keep on doing," he added.
Vance’s statement came after Trump earlier struck an upbeat tone on the prospects for resuming direct US-Iranian talks, saying they could restart within the next two days.
"You should stay there, really, because something could be happening over the next two days, and we're more inclined to go there," Trump said on Tuesday during a telephone interview with a New York Post reporter who is in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Speaking to Fox News host Bret Baier on Monday, US Vice President JD Vance said there had been progress in the Islamabad discussions, describing “some good conversations” with Iranian officials.
