Iran nuclear talks 'didn't pass the smell test' before Trump launched strikes, says Vance

Vice President JD Vance confirmed Monday that negotiations with Iran implicit its atomic programme collapsed aft U.S. officials concluded Tehran’s claims "did not walk the odor test," prompting President Donald Trump to authorize Operation Epic Fury.

Speaking connected "Jesse Watters Primetime," Vance said U.S. envoys — including Steve Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Jared Kushner — had conducted rounds of "deliberate" talks successful Geneva with the Iranian delegation.

The discussions were aimed astatine curbing Tehran’s atomic programme successful speech for sanctions alleviation and averting a broader conflict, helium said, but yet broke down.

"But the Iranians would travel backmost to america and they'd say, ‘Well, you know, having enrichment for civilian purposes, for vigor purposes, is simply a substance of nationalist pride,’" Vance said.

Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, President Donald Trump's Special Representative for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff and U.S. negotiator Jared Kushner conscionable up of the U.S.-Iran talks, successful Muscat, the superior of Oman, connected Feb. 06, 2026.  (Oman Foreign Ministry/Anadolu via Getty Images)

"And truthful we would say, ‘OK, that's interesting, but wherefore are you gathering your enrichment facilities 70 feet underground? And wherefore are you enriching to a level that's mode beyond civilian enrichment and is lone utile if your extremity is to physique a atomic bomb?’" helium said.

"Nobody objects to the Iranians being capable to physique aesculapian isotopes; the objection is these enrichment facilities that are lone utile for gathering a atomic weapon," Vance clarified.

"It conscionable doesn't walk the odor trial for you to accidental that you privation enrichment for aesculapian isotopes, portion astatine the aforesaid clip trying to physique a installation 70 to 80 feet underground," helium explained.

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This representation from video provided by U.S. Central Command shows a rocket being launched from a U.S. Navy vessel successful enactment of Operation Epic Fury connected Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026. (U.S. Central Command via AP)

Vance spoke arsenic Operation Epic Fury ended its 3rd day. Launched connected Feb. 28, U.S. and Israeli forces carried retired coordinated precision strikes heavy wrong Iran aimed astatine crippling Tehran’s rocket arsenal and atomic infrastructure.

A cardinal contented had been Iran enriching uranium to precocious levels, including worldly astir 60% purity — a fraction of weapons-grade but acold supra limits acceptable nether the 2015 atomic woody — keeping planetary alarm precocious implicit proliferation risks.

"We destroyed Iran's quality to physique a atomic limb during President Trump's term," Vance told Watters. "We acceptable them backmost substantially. But I deliberation the President was looking for the agelong haul," helium said.

"Trump was looking for Iran to marque a important semipermanent committedness that they would ne'er physique a atomic weapon, that they would not prosecute the quality to beryllium connected the brink of a atomic weapon."

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Vice President JD Vance speaks with Breitbart News Washington bureau main Matthew Boyle astatine Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium, Nov. 20, 2025, successful Washington.  (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)

"He wanted to marque definite that Iran could ne'er person a atomic weapon, and that would necessitate fundamentally a alteration successful mindset from the Iranian regime."

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"The President is not going to remainder until helium accomplishes that all-important nonsubjective of ensuring that Iran can't person a atomic weapon, not conscionable for the adjacent fewer years, not conscionable due to the fact that we obliterated for dough oregon immoderate other."

"There's conscionable nary mode that Donald Trump is going to let this state to get into a multiyear struggle with nary wide extremity successful show and nary wide objective," Vance added portion describing that the medication would similar to spot "a affable authorities successful Iran, a unchangeable country, a state that's consenting to enactment with the United States."

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