President Donald Trump and Iran announced a deal on Sunday aimed at ending more than three months of war and reopening the strategic Strait of Hormuz. The agreement, set to be formally signed on Friday in Switzerland, represents a major breakthrough in a conflict that has destabilized the Middle East and disrupted global oil markets.
Trump announced the deal on social media, writing, "The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete." Iran's Supreme National Security Council confirmed the agreement, describing it as the result of "a difficult and intensive period of negotiations lasting several months." Under the terms of the memorandum of understanding, the U.S. and Iran will halt sporadic attacks that have continued despite a previous ceasefire.
The fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon is also expected to stop. Both nations will lift their dueling blockades of the Strait of Hormuz, which had prevented oil tankers from leaving the Persian Gulf and driven up global energy prices.
Trump urged, "Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!" However, several critical issues remain unresolved and will be addressed in a new round of negotiations.
The current U.S.-Iran ceasefire has been extended for 60 days, with the goal of reaching a permanent end to the war. The fate of Iran's nuclear program, which Trump cited as the main reason for launching the war in February, will be negotiated.
In an interview with The New York Times, Trump indicated that Iran would be allowed low-level nuclear enrichment, a shift from his earlier demand for the complete dismantling of Iran's nuclear program. Iran also seeks the release of billions of dollars in frozen assets abroad and the lifting of U.S.
and international sanctions. If no agreement is reached within 60 days, Trump warned he could relaunch attacks or make the U.S.
"the guardian of the Middle East" in exchange for 20% of the region's revenues. Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who played a key mediating role, confirmed the signing ceremony in Switzerland.
Iran had made an end to the Israel-Hezbollah fighting a condition for the deal. However, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Monday that Israel would keep troops in southern Lebanon indefinitely, despite an official ceasefire.
On Sunday, Hezbollah fired drones into northern Israel, and Israel responded with a deadly airstrike on a Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut. Trump criticized the Israeli action, saying it should not have happened "on a special day when we are so close to a peace deal with Iran." Israel was not directly involved in the negotiations.
Leaders in the Middle East and Europe praised the deal. Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, who helped mediate alongside Pakistan, urged "positive and constructive" negotiations ahead.
European leaders from the U.K., France, Germany, and Italy called for swift implementation and the urgent reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. French President Emmanuel Macron said the G7 summit in Evian would focus on the long-term reopening of the strait and the diplomatic opportunity created by the agreement.
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called the deal a "critical step" and urged parties to build on the momentum toward a final resolution.