US President Donald Trump appeared to have a drastic change of heart on Wednesday — transitioning seamlessly from rom threatening Iran with “annihilation” to proclaiming a 14-day ceasefire. All sides have presented vastly different versions of the terms, and hundreds more have been killed since the truce was announced. Vice President JD Vance also indicated that Iran had presented three different versions of its 10-point proposal to the US. The White House dismissed the latest iteration on Wednesday, less than 24 hours after the president said it was a workable basis for negotiations.

“The first 10-point proposal was something that was submitted, and we think, frankly, was probably written by ChatGPT, that was submitted to Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner that immediately went in the garbage and was rejected,” the VP told reporters on Wednesday.

Vance claimed that the initial agreement had come from “little more than a random yahoo in Iran” without explaining further. He went on to add that Iran had sent a ‘more reasonable” second 10-point proposal that Trump referenced in Truth Social posts earlier this week.

“There was a second 10-point proposal that was much more reasonable that was based on some back and forth between us, between the Pakistanis and between the Iranians. That is the 10-point proposal that the president was referencing in his Truth yesterday,” Vance added.

The US Vice President claimed he had come to know about the third version of the ceasefire proposal via social media posts. Vance said this version was even more “maximalist” than the first one — but did not explain whether any of the details had made it into the final agreement.

Negotiations in Pakistan this week

Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to visit Pakistan for talks from Saturday. An Iranian delegation will also reach Pakistan on ⁠Thursday ​night for talks to resolve the conflict with ​the ​US and ⁠Israel.

“Despite scepticism of Iranian public opinion due to repeated ⁠ceasefire ⁠violations by Israeli ⁠regime … ‌Iranian delegation ​arrives tonight in ‌Islamabad for serious talks ‌based on ​10 ​points ​proposed by Iran,” Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri ⁠Moghadam, wrote on X.

Iran closes Strait of Hormuz as Israel attacks Lebanon

The two-week ceasefire announced by Trump got off to a shaky start on Wednesday with both Iran and the Gulf nations reporting fresh attacks. All sides have presented vastly different versions of the terms — and it does not appear to include the ongoing Israeli attacks against Lebanon. Pakistan and others had initially confirmed that fighting would also pause in Lebanon amid the truce. Tel Aviv had invaded the the other country after the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group ‘joined’ the war.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed early on Wednesday that the deal doesn’t cover fighting against Hezbollah. Israeli strikes hit several dense commercial and residential areas in central Beirut on Wednesday afternoon without warning — killing dozens and wounding hundreds of people. Iran had again closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to the attack.

Iran truce on the verge of collapse?

A New York-based think tank has warned that the tentative ceasefire “hovers on the verge of collapse” after Israel struck Lebanon on Wednesday. The Soufan Centre warned that the deal risked falling apart — even as US President Donald Trump claimed that military buildup around Iran would remain until a “real agreement” was reached and fully implemented. He also reiterated calls for Iran to possess “no nuclear weapons” and insisted that the (currently closed) Strait of Hormuz would be “open and safe”.

“If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the ‘shootin’ starts’ bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before…In the meantime, our great military is loading up and resting, looking forward, actually, to its next conquest,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.