Assessments that efforts to restrain Israel in Lebanon are being shaped less in Beirut or Tel Aviv than in closed-door talks between Iranian and American negotiators resurfaced ahead of negotiations in the Swiss town of Bürgenstock.

Unlike the current approach adopted by the Lebanese government, Iran continues to pursue a strategy of leveraging its influence on the ground to secure diplomatic gains.

The Lebanese government, meanwhile, remains committed to a separate negotiating track that critics say facilitates concessions to Israel at the negotiating table in Washington that could not be achieved on the battlefield.

US Vice President JD Vance, who arrived in Switzerland to participate in the latest round of talks, confirmed that efforts to make the ceasefire in Lebanon permanent would be among the negotiations’ top priorities.

According to CNN, citing a diplomatic source familiar with the matter, the US and Iranian delegations agreed to convene an emergency session on the situation in Lebanon as the first item of discussion, placing the issue at the top of the agenda.

US says it faces difficulties over Israeli withdrawal

According to diplomatic sources cited by Al-Akhbar newspaper, US officials informed the Iranian side that Washington had made intensive efforts to persuade the Israeli government to complete a full withdrawal from Lebanon but had encountered significant difficulties in the process.

US officials requested Iranian support in facilitating Hezbollah’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon as part of efforts to enable an Israeli pullout.

The Iranian delegation responded that Hezbollah was an internal Lebanese matter. While indicating that Tehran did not oppose an agreement by the Lebanese authorities on a timetable providing for a rapid Israeli withdrawal, the delegation outlined what it viewed as its own area of responsibility.

Iranian representatives said both Tehran and Washington had committed to implementing measures aimed at ending the war across the region, including in Lebanon, and argued that the United States should exert pressure on Israel not only to uphold a ceasefire but also to withdraw quickly.

Iran reiterates Lebanon condition for final agreement

An Iranian official also told CNN that ending the conflict in Lebanon was the most important item on the Iranian delegation’s agenda.

During the talks, Vice President Vance said Washington would continue working toward peace between Lebanon and Israel and expressed hope that the temporary ceasefire could be transformed into a permanent agreement capable of delivering long-term stability.

Speaking before the session, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Tehran would not begin negotiations on a final agreement with Washington unless the war in Lebanon was halted, as stipulated in the US-Iran memorandum of understanding.

In a post on X, Baghaei wrote: “It is not possible to move to the negotiation stage for a final agreement unless these provisions are implemented, foremost among them the first clause, which calls for ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon.”

Military and diplomatic developments ahead of the Bürgenstock talks threatened to undermine the understanding reached between the parties. Following Israeli attacks in Lebanon and what Iran described as an escalation of military tensions in violation of the US-Iran agreement, Tehran announced that it had closed the Strait of Hormuz to traffic.

In a statement, Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters said the closure of the strait was only the first step in a series of measures planned by Tehran. Iran’s Foreign Ministry subsequently announced the suspension of the Geneva negotiations with the United States.

Following those developments, reports indicated that Washington intervened and increased pressure on Israel, leading Israeli military commanders to issue definitive orders for a complete halt to military operations in southern Lebanon for the second time within 24 hours.

Israeli media reports said the decision was not taken solely on Tel Aviv’s own initiative and that military operations were curtailed as a result of intense US pressure following Iran’s move in the Strait of Hormuz.

The United States has lifted its naval blockade of Iran on the orders of President Donald Trump, ending restrictions on vessels entering and leaving Iranian ports.

Announcing the development, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the US military was no longer blocking maritime traffic to Iranian ports and had halted all operations related to enforcing the naval blockade.

The statement added that US warships would remain in the region to monitor compliance with the terms of the agreement.

The decision to lift the blockade follows the memorandum of understanding signed by the United States and Iran on June 18, aimed at ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz to maritime traffic.

After signing the document in France, where he was attending the G7 summit, Trump sent the agreement to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian for approval.

In a statement, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said a formal signing ceremony between the two delegations, previously scheduled to take place in Geneva on June 19, would no longer be held.

Negotiations to continue in Switzerland

According to Axios, citing sources familiar with the matter, the signing process for the memorandum of understanding was accelerated in order to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping as quickly as possible.

A planned meeting between US and Iranian representatives in Switzerland has not been cancelled. The talks are expected to focus on launching negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme, with US Vice President James David Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf set to take part.

According to CNN, the 14-point memorandum calls for an immediate ceasefire on all fronts, the lifting of the naval blockade, the resumption of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the removal of oil sanctions on Iran and the withdrawal of US troops from areas surrounding Iran.

The agreement also includes the allocation of $300 billion for Iran’s economic reconstruction, the release of $24 billion in frozen Iranian assets and a 60-day negotiation process aimed at reaching a final agreement on the nuclear programme.

In return, the authorities in Tehran pledged not to develop nuclear weapons.

The United States is conducting a covert operation in the Strait of Hormuz to ensure the uninterrupted flow of oil shipments from the Persian Gulf, according to reports.

The US Armed Forces are secretly escorting tankers and conducting ship-to-ship oil transfers using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned surface vessels, and helicopters, Reuters reported, citing sources and satellite imagery.

At least 92 cargo vessels have participated in the process since the launch of the operation, the report said.

Sources stated that the plan is executed entirely and continuously under the control of the US military. According to the disclosed details, tankers arrive at a designated assembly point before reaching the Strait of Hormuz.

From there, they depart at staggered times, maintaining a distance of approximately 3 to 4 kilometers from one another. During the transit, the tankers switch off their transponders and extinguish their lights.

The US Armed Forces track the progress of the tankers via pre-determined routing points.

Once the tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz and arrive just outside the zone that Iran has declared under its own control, they pull alongside receiving vessels to begin the oil transfer.

This transfer process reportedly lasts between 24 and 40 hours, after which the emptied tankers return back through the strait. Reuters noted that this method resembles the scheme used by Iran to bypass sanctions.

Oil transfers conducted in two distinct areas

Sources familiar with the process reported that the ship-to-ship oil transfers began in the early days of May and are being carried out in two distinct locations.

One of these points is located off the coast of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), while the other is near the Port of Sohar in Oman.

Reuters reported that satellite imagery dated June 11 detected 17 pairs of vessels simultaneously conducting oil transfers across both areas.

Sources claimed that a US Air Force Apache-type helicopter, which was shot down by Iran on the evening of June 8 and triggered retaliatory strikes by Washington, was also involved in this covert mission.

Satellite imagery captured on the day of the incident showed six pairs of tankers positioned side-by-side off the coast of Sohar. When asked for comment on the matter, the US Department of Defense (Pentagon) maintained that assets of the US Central Command (CENTCOM) are in no way involved in activities providing protection to ship-to-ship oil transfer operations on the high seas.

According to shipping documents reviewed by Reuters, a significant portion of the oil transported in the operation consists of exports originating from the UAE.

Sources added that the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company, a firm owned by the Kuwaiti state, is also actively participating in these transfers.

The UAE government, the UAE state oil company ADNOC, and the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company have not yet made any statements regarding the matter.

In a report published on June 3, Bloomberg also wrote that after Washington suspended its initiative dubbed “Project Freedom,” which envisioned escorting vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, the US Navy continued to quietly assist the transit of ships through the strait while trying not to publicize these activities.

The Iran-based Mehr news agency announced on June 10 that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had shot down a US MQ-9 Reaper-type unmanned aerial vehicle in the skies over the Iranian city of Jam.

On the evening of the same day, US President Donald Trump announced that he was preparing to resume bombardments against Iran due to insufficient progress in negotiations and the downing of the Apache helicopter off the coast of Oman on the evening of June 8.

CENTCOM announced on June 11 that the US military, acting on the instructions of President Donald Trump, had begun conducting “additional self-defense strikes” against certain targets in Iran.

Washington later desisted from launching new strikes, and Trump announced on June 15 that a peace agreement had been signed between the US and Iran.

Trump declared that the Strait of Hormuz was already partially open to maritime traffic and would be fully opened on June 19.