The US and Iran are preparing to begin the first round of negotiations aimed at securing a lasting peace agreement within 60 days, with mediators hoping the serenity of Burgenstock will help ease the complex talks ahead.
The Swiss luxury resort, more accustomed to hosting celebrities, will welcome a different kind of star power as diplomats seek to build on a fragile memorandum of understanding signed this week.
A signing ceremony had been planned in Switzerland, but the US and Iran ultimately signed the MoU separately. Mediators insisted on gathering at Burgenstock anyway, a sign that the race against the clock to turn the fragile agreement into a lasting peace deal has already begun.
On Friday morning, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs put out a statement saying that the talks are off. It had earlier told The National that plans remain in place for the US, Iran and mediators from Pakistan and Qatar to meet at the Burgenstock "for initial negotiations on the implementation of the agreement".
US Vice President JD Vance, who was expected to represent the American side at the ceremony, is not departing for Switzerland as initially scheduled, the White House said late on Thursday.
The 14-point agreement lays out a broad ceasefire across several fronts, including Lebanon, sanctions relief for Iran, the unfreezing of its assets and the creation of a reconstruction fund.
It also includes Iranian commitments not to pursue nuclear weapons and to place portions of its enriched uranium stockpile under International Atomic Energy Agency supervision for monitoring and “down-blending” on site, a compromise that stops short of the removal of material sought by Washington.
The MoU, however, left several key issues unresolved, including Iran's ballistic missile programme, its support for regional militias and proxy groups, the future of uranium enrichment, and the fate of the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran, which attacked its Gulf neighbours during the war, moved quickly to present the agreement as a victory. State media released photographs of what is believed to be the first accord signed by both a US president and an Iranian president since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
In Washington, the Trump administration also sought to claim success, presenting the agreement as the culmination of its military operation and the first step towards a more comprehensive deal that must be reached within 60 days.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Vice President JD Vance cast the agreement that ended the months-long war with Iran not as a concession, but as a deal negotiated from a position of military and political leverage.
He was repeatedly pressed on how the arrangement differed from the 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated under former president Barack Obama, which Mr Trump had long criticised and later abandoned.
"There is no 300 Billion Dollar payment to Iran by the US. That’s Fake News!" President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social. "All there is for the US is Success, Lower Oil Prices, and Victory. Check out the Stock Market." He described the $300 billion news as Democrat "propaganda".
Step towards de-escalation
In the deal, the US agreed to undertake, "with regional partners," to develop a mutually agreed plan with at least $300 billion "for the reconstruction and economic development" of Iran.
The complexity of the agreement and the many questions it leaves unanswered mean that the talks at Burgenstock are likely to be as difficult as ever, despite the area's serenity.
Perched high above Lake Lucerne in the central canton of Nidwalden, the Burgenstock resort is one of the country's most exclusive destinations, surrounded by alpine forests and sweeping mountain views.
The sprawling complex, offering a setting more commonly associated with luxury holidays than high-stakes diplomacy, had hosted heads of state, business leaders and international summits, and is mainly accessible by a combination of boat and funicular railway, adding to its secluded atmosphere.
The Swiss government said access to the venue on Friday would be strictly limited to delegates from the participating countries, mainly the US, Iran, Pakistan and Qatar. Even media access will be tightly controlled, with only a small number of journalists from those countries expected to receive accreditation.
"Peace and security in the Middle East are a priority of Swiss foreign policy," it added. "Switzerland welcomes the Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Iran, facilitated by Pakistan with the support of Qatar and other states, as an important step towards de-escalation," it added.
