A weekend of secret talks in Zurich. JD Vance, Donald Trump’s running mate, sat down with Iranian diplomats. No White House clearance. No State Department involvement.
Westminster is rattled. Our intelligence partners across the pond are watching closely. The chatter in Whitehall is nervous. This is not how allies behave.
“It’s amateur hour,” a former MI6 officer told me. “You don’t run freelance foreign policy. Not with Iran.”
The timing is delicate. The UK is trying to broker a new nuclear deal. Tehran is testing centrifuges again. Our GCHQ analysts are tracking every signal.
Vance’s motives are unclear. Some say he’s building a Trumpian backchannel. Others whisper about business interests. His wife’s venture capital firm has ties to Gulf states. But Iran?
Labour MPs are demanding answers. David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, will face questions tomorrow. “We have been clear with the US administration that this is unhelpful,” a source says.
The Americans are furious. The Biden camp denies knowledge. “This is not coordinated,” a State Department official told me, off the record.
What did Vance offer? A future Trump administration lifting sanctions? Recognition of the regime? The Iranians are not naive. They will extract maximum leverage.
The UK’s Five Eyes partners are alarmed. Australia and Canada have called for briefings. New Zealand is quiet, but worried.
In the Commons, the Tory benches are split. Some see Vance as a potential ally. Others fear a rogue operation. “He’s not even in office yet,” a former defence secretary said. “This is dangerous.”
The Swiss, ever neutral, allowed the meeting. But their diplomats are now uncomfortable. Geneva is a hub for sensitive talks. This was not one of them.
What happens next? The intelligence committees will want to know more. The National Security Adviser is monitoring. The PM is being kept informed.
Vance’s camp has not commented. His spokesman said only that “discussions were productive.” Productive for whom?
The Iranian delegation, led by a senior Revolutionary Guard figure, left Zurich smiling. That should worry us all.
I will update this story as it develops. For now, the message from Whitehall is clear: this is a mess. And it is not over.
