Overview
- Vice President J.D. Vance, speaking to reporters in Budapest on Wednesday after campaigning for Viktor Orbán, compared Iran’s claimed “right to enrichment” to his wife’s “right to skydive.”
- He reiterated the U.S. position that Iran must not have the capacity to build a nuclear weapon and that Washington wants Iran to give up nuclear fuel.
- Reactions were swift as Jen Psaki, Morning Joe hosts, and many on X criticized the analogy as confusing and out of touch.
- The White House says Vance will lead U.S. negotiations in Islamabad, where Iran’s 10-point proposal and its assertion of a right to enrich will be tested even as President Trump says, “There will be no enrichment of uranium.”
- The remarks arrive during a fragile, Pakistan-brokered ceasefire and ongoing disputes over what the truce covers and what Iran’s proposal includes, raising stakes for regional fighting and any path to a deal.