US vice-president JD Vance has warned Iran not to “play” the US as he headed overseas for negotiations aimed at ending their war.
Vance, who has long been sceptical of foreign military interventions and outspoken about the prospect of sending troops into open-ended conflicts, set off Friday to lead mediated talks with Iran in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad.
Boarding Air Force Two on his way to Pakistan, the vice president said:We’re looking forward to the negotiation.
I think it’s gonna be positive. We’ll of course see.
He cited Trump, adding: “If the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we’re certainly willing to extend the open hand.”
But he said: “If they’re gonna try and play us, then they’re gonna find that the negotiating team is not that receptive.”
Vance also said that Trump “gave us some pretty clear guidelines” on how talks should go, but he didn’t elaborate.
The vice president did not take questions from reporters traveling with him.
