An agreement to end the war in Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz has been “largely been negotiated,” President Trump wrote in a social media post on Saturday, adding “final aspects and details of the Deal are currently being discussed, and will be announced shortly.”
Trump said that he had spoken with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain about a “Memorandum of Understanding pertaining to PEACE.” He had also spoken to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by phone, which “went very well,” he said.
An Israeli official, writing on the condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly, said Netanyahu emphasized that Israel will “maintain freedom of action against threats in all areas, including in Lebanon.” The official also said that Trump indicated that he will not sign a final agreement unless Iran agrees to dismantle its nuclear program and remove all enriched uranium.
But there was no official confirmation from Iran and the semi official Fars news agency indicated there were still wide disagreements. Some of those centered on the Strait of Hormuz, the shipping waterway largely controlled by Iran.
Within the past 24 hours, at least 33 ships, including oil tankers have passed through the Strait of Hormuz with Iran's permission, according to Fars citing the IRGC Navy on Sunday. As of Saturday, about 240 ships are waiting for Iran's permission to pass through the strait, Fars also said.
Fars said early Sunday that the agreement provided for Iran to continue to manage the waterway. It called Trump's assertion that Iran would no longer control access “inconsistent with reality.”
Since originally saying the war launched by the U.S. and Israel on February 28th would be over in a matter of days, Trump has repeatedly announced the conflict is nearing an end, amid a fragile ceasefire, only for talks to fall through.
However, the latest announcement has been hailed by Pakistani mediators with Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar saying on X: “The achievements of these negotiations offer grounds for optimism that a positive and durable outcome is within reach.”
And a spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry said earlier on Saturday that the US and Iran were in the “final stage” of a memorandum of understanding and “the positions of the two sides are becoming closer.”
But the U.S. and Iran still appear at odds on some key issues.
Trump said the deal would involve Iran reopening the Strait Hormuz, the blockade of which is reverberating across the global economy, with Americans facing high fuel prices as millions travel for the Memorial Day holiday this weekend.
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei told semi-official Iranian state media on Saturday that the Strait had nothing to do with the US, adding that Tehran was engaging with Oman, which lies across the waterway, to decide what happens there.
The news agency, Tasnim, reported that the Strait of Hormuz would “not return to its pre-war status” under an agreement.
There are also questions over Iran's nuclear program.
While Trump wants Iran to renounce any nuclear ambitions, Iran wants a permanent end to the war before negotiations on nuclear weapons. Iran also wants sanctions relief from the U.S. and other countries and reparations from the war.
It's expected that after any deal a period of one to two months of negotiations on Iran's nuclear program will follow.
Israel has made clear in past negotiations that it opposed a deal that provided any concessions to Iran.
A person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to speak publicly told NPR that Israel is “very unhappy with the emerging deal” and views it as “an economic deal that doesn't address Israel's security concerns.” The person also said that Israel is “angry” at Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who Israel says is “pushing a deal at any cost.”
On Sunday, a senior Israeli official, writing on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly, said in a statement to reporters: “The emerging agreement is bad because it signals to the Iranians that they possess a weapon no less effective than a nuclear one, and that is the Strait of Hormuz.”
The official said while Trump believes the agreement includes an opening of the Strait of Hormuz with progress linked to Iran dismantling its nuclear program it was not clear what would happen after the initial phase.
Trump has also been criticized by some members of his Republican party. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas said on X the president should stick to his “red lines,” adding it would be a “disastrous mistake” if an agreement resulted in Iran being able to develop nuclear weapons and have control over the Strait of Hormuz.
Still, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was positive overall on Sunday, speaking to reporters while on a trip to New Delhi. America's top diplomat said it was possible the world would get some “good news” in the coming hours, but added there was “still work to do.”
NPR's Jane Arraf, Daniel Estrin, Chandelis Duster, Greg Myre, and Kate Bartlett contributed to this report.
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