Iran confirms receiving Vance letter seeking renewed talks, says no response yet - report
The outreach, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, targets senior Iranian hard-liner Mohsen Rezaei as Washington seeks a negotiated settlement and an agreement on Tehran’s nuclear program
Iran has received a letter from US Vice President JD Vance but has yet to respond, Iranian news agencies reported Friday, confirming a diplomatic approach aimed at restarting negotiations and averting another round of US military strikes.
Tasnim reported that Tehran had received the message without replying. Fars carried a similar report, citing a source familiar with the matter.
The confirmation came a day after The Wall Street Journal reported that Vance sent the letter at President Donald Trump’s direction to Mohsen Rezaei, a senior figure in Iran’s security establishment associated with the regime’s hard-line camp.
According to a separate account citing a US official familiar with the negotiations, Vance offered to meet Rezaei personally to discuss a negotiated settlement to the war. The letter was sent last week.
The official said Vance framed the proposed negotiations around the national interests of both countries: preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, while allowing Tehran to rebuild its economy and preserve its sovereignty. Vance also stressed the need for Iranian representatives with the authority to negotiate nuclear issues.
A former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Rezaei is described in the account as having substantial influence across the security establishment and close ties to officials overseeing the economy.
US intelligence officials reportedly believe Rezaei remains in regular contact with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and that the two have communicated since the letter arrived. Istanbul or Doha would be the most likely venues for a meeting, according to the US official.
The diplomatic effort comes as Washington increases its military presence in the region and weighs the prospects for a settlement against renewed conflict.