Iranian representatives have reportedly told the US administration that they are unwilling to resume negotiations with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of Donald Trump. Instead, they have expressed a preference to engage with US Vice President J.D. Vance, according to a report by CNN citing two regional sources.
The report suggests that Tehran views potential talks involving Witkoff and Kushner as unlikely to succeed, citing a “deficit of trust” following the collapse of earlier negotiations and subsequent military action by Israel and the United States. Iranian officials reportedly see Vance—unlike Witkoff, Kushner, or even Secretary of State Marco Rubio—as more sympathetic and more inclined toward ending the conflict.
“Who the administration decides to send, the Iranians will have to deal with, but it doesn’t mean they don’t have a preference,” one source told CNN.
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In a similar report, The Guardian quoted an Iranian diplomatic source describing Vance as a more acceptable interlocutor. “If the negotiations are going to have any outcome, J.D. Vance should join. With Witkoff and Kushner, nothing will come out of it. We have seen that in the past,” the source said.
Vance is widely regarded as sceptical of US involvement in a Middle East conflict and has largely remained quiet on the issue.
Meanwhile, the United States has reportedly sent Iran a 15-point proposal aimed at ending the war. The plan, delivered through Pakistan, addresses Tehran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, as well as maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Trump said that Vance, Rubio, Witkoff and Kushner were all involved in leading the negotiations. He also claimed that Iran was eager to reach an agreement and had recently offered the US a “significant prize” related to the Strait of Hormuz and global oil flows.
“They are going to make a deal. They did something yesterday that was amazing, actually. They gave us a present. And the present arrived today. It was a very big present worth a tremendous amount of money,” Trump said.