Iran's top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, has issued a stark warning to Washington: any US-Iran peace deal will be conditional on Israel withdrawing its forces from Lebanon. The demand comes as negotiations between the two countries continue, with a 60-day ceasefire in place but no clear end to hostilities in sight.
A high-ranking Hezbollah official confirmed that Tehran has pledged to press for Israeli troop withdrawal in its next phase of talks with the US, highlighting the deepening involvement of regional actors in the conflict. The move is likely to spark fresh tensions between Israel and Iran's allies, particularly given President Trump's recent criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of Lebanon.
Speaking at the G7 leaders summit, Donald Trump launched a scathing attack on Netanyahu, accusing him of acting 'viciously' in Beirut and suggesting that Syria might be better equipped to deal with Hezbollah. The US vice-president has meanwhile proposed a fund of up to $300bn (£223bn) in Arab state investment in the Iranian economy as a reward for Iran meeting its commitments to abandon nuclear ambitions.
However, European leaders are growing increasingly wary of the deal's lack of detail and have called for stricter controls on Iran's ballistic missile programme. The implications of this fragile peace process are significant: if US-Iran negotiations collapse, the consequences will be far-reaching – and deeply felt in Europe.