Vice President JD Vance argued during an interview with Bill Maher Friday that \u201cAmerica wins\u201d even if Iran refuses to sign a deal that would end the war.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we don\u2019t make the final deal, their nuclear program is still destroyed, they\u2019re still much weaker as a country,\u201d Vance said during his appearance on \u201cReal Time with Bill Maher.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo my attitude is America wins either way,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
Vice President JD Vance talks with Bill Maher during an appearance on \u201cReal Time\u201d on June 26, 2026. Real Time with Bill Maher\/YouTube<\/p>\n
Vance noted that President Trump tasked US negotiators with \u201csomething that frankly, nobody in 47 years of dealing with the Iranians has done, which is offer them an opportunity to fundamentally transform how they behave with the West.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cIf they\u2019re willing to change, we\u2019re willing to change, too,\u201d the vice president said, adding, \u201cIf they\u2019re not willing to change, we still fundamentally have all the cards. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s a good place for us to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 41-year-old veep jetted off to Switzerland last weekend<\/a> for high-stakes meetings with Iranian representatives mediated by Pakistani and Qatari officials.<\/p>\n During his face-to-face remarks with Tehran\u2019s top negotiators last Sunday, Vance declared the Trump administration\u2019s goal<\/a> was to \u201ctransform our relationship\u201d with Iran.<\/p>\n Bill Maher hosts Vice President JD Vance during a sit-down on his HBO show on June 26, 2026. Real Time with Bill Maher\/YouTube<\/p>\n Vice President JD Vance makes his opening remarks at the start of a meeting between the US, Iran, Pakistan and Qatar in Switzerland on June 21, 2026. Nathan Howard\/Pool Reuters via AP<\/p>\n \u201cWhat the president has asked us to do is turn over a new leaf to transform our relationship with the people of Iran, and to extend an outstretched hand that says to the people of Iran that if your leadership is willing to give up being a driver of regional instability,\u201d Vance said.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they are willing to give up nuclear weapons ambitions for the long term, then the United States is willing to fundamentally transform our relationship with that country,\u201d he went on. \u201cThat is certainly our goal.\u201d<\/p>\n Vance\u2019s trip to the luxurious Buergenstock Resort Lake Lucerne, near Stansstad, Switzerland, was a part of the first round of talks with Iran under the mutually agreed memorandum of understanding<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n The MOU between President Trump and Iran\u2019s President Masoud Pezeshkian was meant to stop fighting and kick off 60 days of talks for a grand deal to end Tehran\u2019s nuclear program.<\/p>\n On Friday, hours before Vance\u2019s sit-down with Maher, Trump claimed Iran had violated<\/a> the cease-fire after an Iranian drone struck Singaporean-flagged ship M\/V Ever Lovely.<\/p>\n The attack came after Iran warned vessels to ignore a US-approved shipping lane through the Strait of Hormuz, along the Omani coast, instead hoping for the ships to use a passage of their choosing.<\/p>\n The US conducted strikes on Iran on June 26, 2026. U.S. Central Command<\/p>\n Oil tankers and cargo ships sit anchored off the coast of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz on June 23, 2026. Getty Images<\/p>\n Following the \u201cfoolish violation,\u201d US forces conducted military strikes<\/a> in Iran, targeting Iranian drone storage facilities and coastal radar sites.<\/p>\n On Saturday, Iran claimed it had struck targets linked to the US in response to Friday\u2019s strikes but didn\u2019t identify the targets, according to Reuters. <\/p>\n Vance warned Iran that violent acts during the cease-fire will be met with force<\/p>\n