A sudden diplomatic breakthrough appears to have pulled Washington and Tehran back from the brink, with US and Iranian officials saying they have agreed on a peace framework aimed at ending their war, lifting the US blockade of Iran and reopening the Strait of Hormuz — a move that could ease energy costs as oil cargoes return to one of the world’s most vital shipping routes.
“The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete,” US President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
- Advertisement -
Trump’s announcement came moments after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose government has acted as a mediator, said the two sides had reached an accord.
The pact will be officially signed on Friday in Switzerland, Mr Sharif wrote.
In a post on X, Mr Sharif said the agreement provided for “the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.”
Lebanon had emerged as one of the toughest obstacles in the negotiations, as Israel and Hezbollah pressed ahead with cross-border attacks in recent weeks despite appeals from Mr Trump and other international figures to stand down.
Trump said the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial artery for global energy markets that Iran has effectively closed for months — would reopen on Friday, adding that he had ordered an end to the US blockade of Iranian ports.
“Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!,” Mr Trump wrote.
An Israeli strike on southern Beirut nearly threw the talks off course at the last minute
The market reacted swiftly. Brent crude futures dropped 4% in early trading this morning, while US West Texas Intermediate fell more than 4.6%.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, said negotiators would use a 60-day ceasefire window to pursue a broader agreement, including possible sanctions relief.
Those follow-on talks will also address the future of Iran’s nuclear program, sources previously told Reuters.
Thousands of people have been killed, most of them in Iran and Lebanon, since US and Israeli forces first attacked Iran on 28 February.
Iran has launched strikes on Israel and on Gulf states hosting US bases, while also effectively blockading the Strait of Hormuz, driving up energy prices worldwide.
US forces, in turn, have blocked Iranian ports.
There was no immediate reaction from Israel, which has said it was not a party to the planned US-Iran agreement.
For Mr Trump and fellow Republicans in Congress, the war has become an increasingly difficult political burden at home, with opinion polls showing Americans deeply unhappy over higher petrol prices ahead of November’s midterm elections.
At the same time, Mr Trump has come under pressure from within his own party, where some voices insist Iran’s nuclear program must be shut down entirely.
Israeli attack
The framework held together despite an Israeli strike on Lebanon yesterday that drew condemnation from Iran and criticism from Mr Trump.
Iranian negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said earlier that Israel’s latest strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs — which Israel said was aimed at Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants — showed the United States lacked “the will and ability to fulfil your commitments” in a post on X.
Iran’s foreign ministry said it held the US responsible for the attack.
Iran warned of a “strong response”, and its top joint military command said the “finger (is) on the trigger” ready to fire at the “enemy’s heart”.
Earlier yesterday, Mr Trump wrote: “This morning’s attack on Beirut should not have happened, particularly on a special day when we are so close to a Peace Deal with Iran.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has clashed with Mr Trump over US demands that Israel scale back its operations in Lebanon to give Washington room to secure a deal with Iran.
Israel has said it intends to preserve freedom of action in Lebanon, while Iran has made a full ceasefire there a central element of its demands.
Mr Trump briefed Mr Netanyahu on progress toward a peace agreement during a phone call yesterday, Israel’s N12 reported, citing a senior official.
Deal terms
A senior Iranian official earlier told Reuters that the draft agreement would require the US to release $25bn in frozen Iranian assets, while Iran would commit not to produce or obtain nuclear weapons.
The official said Iran had also agreed to preserve the nuclear status quo — with no uranium enrichment and no expansion of nuclear facilities — until a final settlement is reached.
Before the agreement was announced, a US official said the deal would eventually result in the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program, with its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to be destroyed and removed.
Some hardliners have branded Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi a ‘compromiser’
A senior Iranian official said the draft accord would allow Iran, which denies seeking a nuclear bomb, to dilute its enriched uranium inside the country.
Qatari negotiators flew to Tehran yesterday morning as part of the final push to close the agreement, a source with knowledge of the situation told Reuters.
At pro-government rallies across Iran on Saturday night, residents and news agencies said hardliners opposed to the framework voiced their anger loudly.
A resident in the northeastern city of Mashhad told Reuters that some demonstrators chanted “Death to the compromiser,” in an apparent reference to Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi.
