“Vance leads behind-the-scenes negotiations on resumption of ceasefire and nuclear talks with Iran” <Axios>

Axios, an American political media outlet, reported on the 6th (local time) that U.S. Vice President JD Vance is recently leading indirect negotiations behind the scenes for a new ceasefire and resumption of nuclear negotiations between the U.S. and Iran.

Axios reported that Vice President Vance has been directly involved in indirect negotiations over the past two weeks and has had almost daily discussions with mediators of indirect negotiations, including Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Pakistan Army Chief of Staff General Asim Munir.

At the same time, it was analyzed that this was meaningful in that Vice President Vance personally stepped forward to help the United States escape the war with Iran, and that indirect negotiations were elevated to the highest level of the U.S. administration.

Steve Witkoff, the president's special envoy for the Middle East, and Jared Kushner, President Trump's eldest son-in-law and advisor, are also involved in the indirect negotiations.

Vice President Vance and mediators from Qatar and Pakistan have been discussing a plan to have the United States and Iran hold a working-level technical meeting in the near future, but this has not yet been reached, sources said.

The vice president's office declined to comment.

On the 4th (local time), the day after the U.S. midterm election ended in a historic defeat for the Republican Party, Vice President Vance cited the Iran war as a key reason why the Republican Party was judged by voters in the election.

Two weeks before the election, Vice President Vance sent a letter to Mohsen Rezai, Secretary General of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, suggesting that the two sides resume direct negotiations.

General Rezai is one of the closest associates of Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.

Iranian officials said Vice President Vance's letter created positive momentum toward resuming negotiations.

According to Axios, before the US surprise attack on Iran in late February, Vice President Vance was the most skeptical of war among Trump's key associates and instead advocated for a diplomatic solution.

Vice President Vance participated as a representative of the U.S. negotiating team at a high-level meeting on the Iran issue held in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, in April. He was also directly involved in the negotiations that led to the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the United States and Iran in June.

Afterwards, Vice President Vance led the U.S. delegation in direct negotiations with Iran held in Switzerland.

These negotiations ended with Iran promising to invite UN inspectors to visit its nuclear facilities, but the ceasefire agreement under the MOU collapsed soon after as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) resumed attacks on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Sources involved in mediation efforts said progress was being made, but at a very slow pace.

President Trump spoke on the phone with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim Al Thani on the morning of the 6th and discussed Qatar's efforts to narrow differences between the United States and Iran over the agreement.

According to a statement from the Qatari monarch's office, Sheikh Tamim emphasized, "We must continue dialogue and resolve differences through diplomatic means, prevent further escalation of tensions in the region, and ensure freedom of maritime navigation and security of energy supplies."

President Trump is willing to wait and see how diplomatic efforts unfold and wants to see if some form of agreement is possible, Axios said, citing U.S. officials and regional sources anonymously.

Asked by reporters on the 6th what message he had for Iran, President Trump said, "We are talking to them."

Axios reported, however, that the U.S. military is prepared to launch an attack within a relatively short period of time if President Trump changes his mind and orders a resumption of the attack.