Vance Weighs Face-to-Face Talks With Iranian Security Chief as Trump Pushes for ‘Total Victory’

Vice President JD Vance is considering direct, face-to-face talks with a senior Iranian security official as President Donald Trump gives him a leading role in renewed efforts to end the monthslong conflict with Iran, according to a Wednesday report from The Wall Street Journal.

Vance is weighing a meeting with Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. No meeting has been scheduled, and the discussions remain preliminary, with Washington and Tehran continuing to communicate through regional intermediaries. Vance sent Rezaei a letter in October requesting a meeting.

Trump has told senior aides and foreign counterparts he is open to letting Vance restart negotiations, elevating the vice president above Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who have also worked on talks with Tehran.

The push follows Vance’s earlier diplomatic effort in June, which produced a memorandum of understanding that paused fighting temporarily but did not secure Iranian commitments to limit its nuclear program or give up control over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. That agreement fell apart after Iranian forces resumed attacks on commercial vessels in the waterway.

Two officials told the Journal that Trump has privately questioned whether the June deal was a mistake that gave Iran time to regroup and collect oil revenue before the U.S. imposed its naval blockade. A White House official disputed that characterization, saying the president has not reconsidered the agreement and that negotiators acted in good faith.

Qatar Talks and White House Meetings

The diplomatic push advanced Monday when Vance met with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani before the two joined Trump and other senior officials at the White House. Doha is being considered as a possible site for direct talks between Vance and Iranian officials.

Afterward, Trump said negotiations were progressing and suggested another major American offensive was unlikely, while the U.S. keeps its naval blockade in place and forces ready to respond if needed.