US Partially Lifts Iran Oil Sanctions Amid Peace Talks; Tehran Disputes Nuclear Inspection Claims

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Iran-US war latest: US waives Iran oil sanctions as Tehran disputes Vance’s nuclear inspection claims

US president’s threats come as Vance joins other US officials in Zurich to hammer out peace deal terms with a battery of Tehran's leaders

Iran hit back at Donald Trump on Monday after the US president threatened to “take over the rest of the country” if the Strait of Hormuz is closed again.

“You make threats; we take action”, Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, wrote on social media in apparent reference to Trump.

“The Strait of Hormuz is neither your personal casino nor the backyard of modern-day pirates; these are Iranian sovereign waters, and the ultimate decision rests with the noble people of Iran and its brave armed forces”.

Iran lifted its effective blockade of Hormuz last week after agreeing with the US to extend a ceasefire to allow for peace negotiations, but Tehran’s Revolutionary Guards on Saturday declared the waterway shut once again, in response to Israeli strikes in Lebanon.

The US president said in response he had warned Iranian officials that “you close [the strait] and you won’t have a country”, Fox News’s Trey Yingst reported on Sunday.

High-stakes talks aimed at finalising a deal to end the war are expected to continue. US Vice President JD Vance told reporters, “We laid a very good foundation for a successful final deal”.

Iran disputes Vance's nuclear inspection claims

Iran has reportedly denied a claim by US vice president JD Vance that Tehran would allow nuclear inspectors back into the country following initial talks in Switzerland.

Vance said discussions with the International Atomic Energy Agency could be happening "as soon as today".

However, Iran's foreign ministry said Tehran had made "no new commitments" on nuclear inspections.

Since the 12-day war between Israel and Iran in 2025, inspectors have visited the Islamic Republic.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar23 June 2026 04:20

US partially lifts Iran oil sanctions

The US has partially lifted sanctions on Iranian oil exports following “encouraging” talks over ending their months-long war.

The US Treasury yesteday issued a 60-day sanctions waiver after the first talks under a nascent ​peace deal.

US vice president JD Vance said talks with Iranian officials in Switzerland had laid a good foundation for a final peace deal, although Iran denied that it had begun discussions of its nuclear program.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar23 June 2026 04:14

Watch: Trump says Israel would be 'eviscerated' without him

Rebecca Whittaker23 June 2026 04:00

Netanyahu's claims about Iran's nuclear program run counter to public evidence

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed that Iran would have developed a nuclear weapon and used it on Israel were it not for the two recent wars. There is no public evidence for that assessment, which runs counter to those of the U.N. nuclear watchdog and U.S. intelligence agencies.

For decades, Netanyahu has made dire predictions about Iran's disputed nuclear program, most famously at the United Nations with visual aids. The rhetoric has escalated since the U.S. and Iran reached an interim peace deal this month, and as Netanyahu faces elections later this year.

Read more here:

FACT FOCUS: Netanyahu's claims about Iran's nuclear program run counter to public evidence

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed that Iran would have developed a nuclear weapon and used it on Israel were it not for the two wars of the past year

Rebecca Whittaker23 June 2026 03:00

Recap: What did the US and Iran agree in Switzerland?

Negotiators for the US and Iran met in Switzerland over the weekend for talks on a lasting resolution to the conflict.

Mediators Pakistan and Qatar said they had agreed to a roadmap towards a final deal on ending their war in 60 days.

They also said the two sides had agreed to a mechanism to end fighting between US ally Israel and Iran-aligned Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

And they said they had opened a communications line to help ensure safe passage for commercial ships through the strait, a vital global supply route for oil and liquefied natural gas.

Technical talks will continue for the rest of the week in the Qatari-owned Swiss mountain resort of Buergenstock, the joint statement said.

Rebecca Whittaker23 June 2026 02:00

Vance claims Iran will allow nuclear inspectors in after hailing ‘great progress’ in peace talks

JD Vance said on Monday that Iran has agreed to allow nuclear inspectors into the country again following an initial round of discussions aimed at resolving the conflict with the United States.

Speaking after discussions in Switzerland, the US vice president said the development was “probably what we’re most excited about as Americans”, and that plans could be drawn up as soon as this week.

Iran’s nuclear programme has been at the centre of the dispute with the US and Israel since before the conflict erupted, and remains the focus of the new 60-day window for talks to finalise a deal to end the war.

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Vance claims Iran will let nuclear inspectors in following ‘great progress’ in talks

JD Vance insisted the first talks had laid a ‘good foundation’ for a final deal, despite lingering concerns over Lebanon and the Strait of Hormuz

Rebecca Whittaker23 June 2026 01:00

Watch: Vance claims Trump wants to 'turn over new leaf' in ties with Iranian people

Rebecca Whittaker23 June 2026 00:00

What did the US and Iran agree in Switzerland?

Negotiators for the US and Iran met in Switzerland over the weekend for talks on a lasting resolution to the conflict.

Mediators Pakistan and Qatar said they had agreed to a roadmap towards a final deal on ending their war in 60 days.

They also said the two sides had agreed to a mechanism to end fighting between US ally Israel and Iran-aligned Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

And they said they had opened a communications line to help ensure safe passage for commercial ships through the strait, a vital global supply route for oil and liquefied natural gas.

Technical talks will continue for the rest of the week in the Qatari-owned Swiss mountain resort of Buergenstock, the joint statement said.

James Reynolds22 June 2026 23:00

Recap: Iran agreed to allow more nuclear inspectors, Vance says

JD Vance told reporters in Switzerland on Monday that Iran had agreed to admit inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as talks continue.

He said the development “is probably what we’re most excited about as Americans”.

“That is a major milestone for the American people, and the first step in permanently denuclearizing or permanently ending a nuclear weapons program in Iran, and that’s exactly what we wanted to do,” he added.

James Reynolds22 June 2026 22:00

'I will do ​what ⁠I have to do,' if Iran violates agreement says Trump

Donald Trump has stressed "I will do what I have to do" if Iran does not stick to its agreement with Washington.

"If Iran doesn't live up to their agreement, or if they're not ⁠behaving, I will do ​what ⁠I have to do," Trump told reporters.

Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian ⁠signed an interim US-Iran deal last week.

Trump said on Monday Iran was supposed to use the money being unfrozen to buy ⁠food exclusively from the United States.

"All that money's coming back in the form of purchases of food which they desperately need. They have 91 million people, they can't feed them. So, the money that ‌we lift is going to go ​to our farmers," Trump said.

Rebecca Whittaker22 June 2026 21:41