Inside America’s ‘final and best offer’ for Iran as 21-hour talks fail

The United States has presented what it called its “final and best offer” to Iran after nearly 21 hours of negotiations failed to produce an agreement, with Vice President JD Vance saying the talks broke down over Tehran’s refusal to commit to abandoning nuclear weapons ambitions.

Speaking to reporters after the talks, Vance said US officials remained in constant touch with President Donald Trump and the national security team throughout the negotiations, which involved multiple rounds of discussions with Iranian representatives.

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“We leave here with a very simple proposal… our final and best offer. We’ll see if the Iranians accept it,” Vance said, adding that Washington had negotiated “in good faith” over an extended period.

Core sticking point: nuclear commitment

At the heart of the deadlock is the US demand for a clear and long-term Iranian commitment not to develop nuclear weapons.

“The simple fact is that we need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon, and they will not seek the tools that would enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” Vance said.

He added that Washington was not convinced Iran had demonstrated the required intent, particularly over the long term.

“We haven’t seen that yet. We hope that we will,” he said.

What the ‘final offer’ entails

While declining to disclose full details, Vance said the US had laid out clear red lines as well as areas where it was willing to be flexible.

“We’ve made very clear what our red lines are, what things we’re willing to accommodate them on, and what things we’re not willing to accommodate them on,” he said.

The talks covered a wide range of issues, including Iran’s nuclear programme and other related matters such as frozen assets, though no agreement was reached.

No deal after prolonged negotiations

Vance described the outcome as “bad news for Iran much more than it’s bad news for the United States,” signalling Washington’s attempt to shift pressure onto Tehran.

He said the US delegation had engaged in “a number of substantive discussions” but ultimately failed to secure acceptance of its terms.

Backchannel diplomacy and mediation

The Vice President also acknowledged the role of Pakistan in facilitating discussions, saying it had “done an amazing job” in trying to help bridge gaps between the two sides.

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Despite those efforts, the negotiations ended without a breakthrough.

Constant coordination with Trump

Vance said the US team remained in frequent contact with President Trump during the talks, speaking to him multiple times over the 21-hour period, alongside consultations with senior officials including the national security leadership.

“The President told us… to come here in good faith and make your best effort to get a deal. We did that,” he said.

What next

With no agreement in place, the US has now put the onus on Iran to respond to its proposal.

“We’ll see if the Iranians accept it,” Vance said, indicating that the diplomatic window remains open but uncertain.