Vice President JD Vance revealed that U.S. officials directly told Iranian negotiators they cannot engage in “trash talk” without expecting a strong pushback from President Donald Trump.

Speaking at a press briefing in Switzerland, Vance explained the administration’s firm stance: “What we told the Iranians yesterday is, when you guys engage in what us millennials might call trash talk, you can't expect the president of the United States not to respond, not to correct the record. So when they say things that aren't true, the president is going to respond to it, I'm going to respond to it, Americans are going to respond to it.” 

Vance’s comments come after negotiations reportedly stalled on Sunday following President Trump’s demand that Iran halt actions through its terrorist proxies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon. Trump issued a clear warning during the impasse: “We'll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!”. After a brief pause, talks resumed.

Vance acknowledged the tensions but emphasized that progress was ultimately made. “There was a little bit of threatening. There was a little bit of whining, but at the end of the day, talks continued and we made great progress,” Vance said.

The episode further illustrates the Trump administration’s no-nonsense approach: America is open to serious negotiations, but it will not tolerate propaganda, provocations, or bad-faith behavior from the Iranian regime.

The message from the U.S. delegation remains clear — diplomatic talks will continue, but only on realistic terms that prioritize American interests and regional stability, and if Iranians want to play a PR game for internal consumption and deception , they shouldn't expect the U.S. to be a complicit partner.