A recent report on the Axios news platform alleges that U.S. Representative J.D. Vance has been conducting indirect talks with Iran for the past two weeks. According to the article, Vance has been in contact almost daily through intermediaries, including Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al‑Thani and Pakistani Army Chief Marshal Asim Munir, as well as other unnamed mediators. The report also names U.S. officials Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner as participants in the process. The article states that Vance and the mediators have discussed holding a technical meeting between the two sides in the coming days, but that such a meeting has not yet taken place. Two weeks earlier, Vance reportedly sent a letter to Iran’s National Security Council Secretary Muhsin Riza proposing a return to direct negotiations. Iranian officials, according to the report, said the letter had given the negotiation process a positive momentum. Vance is also quoted in the article as saying that the war was the “main reason” for the Republican defeat in the U.S. congressional mid‑term elections held on November 3. The claims made in the Axios article are based on two unnamed sources and have not been independently verified. No official statements from the U.S. government or the Iranian government confirm the alleged meetings.
Article and image source: Haberler