Iran-US peace deal: Where it stands today, what’s being negotiated and who said what – everything you need to know | Today’s news
Iran and the US are reportedly nearing a peace deal, top officials from both sides have indicated in recent days. However, they still have to agree on a memorandum of understanding as differences “still remain in one or two clauses of a possible memorandum of understanding”.
Here’s everything you need to know about the latest US-Iran peace deal talks, what officials are saying and what’s being negotiated.
Who said what about the Iran-US deal
1. US President Donald Trump on Sunday he said that the deal with Iran is not “fully discussed yet”. In posts on Truth Social, he said: “Negotiations are proceeding in an orderly and constructive manner and I have informed my representatives not to rush into a deal while it is on our side.”
He said, “The The blockade will remain in full force and effective until agreement is reached, confirmed and signed. Both sides need to take their time and get it right.”
Read also | Iran, US move closer to 14-point peace framework, gaps remain
Trump added that the US relationship with Iran is becoming “much more professional and productive. But they must understand that cannot develop or acquire a nuclear weapon or bomb.”
The US President was interested in whether Iran would like to join the historic Abrahamic Accords. He said: “So far, I would like to thank all the countries of the Middle East for their support and cooperation, which will be further strengthened and strengthened by joining the nations of the historic Abraham Accords, and who knows, maybe the Islamic Republic of Iran would like to join!
2. Iranian President Pezeshkian was quoted by Mehr News as saying on May 24 that Iran was ready to reassure the world about nuclear weapons and regional instability.
He reportedly said on Sunday that Iran’s position remained consistent and stressed that Tehran was ready to provide assurances that the nuclear program is peaceful and that the country has no intention of stirring up unrest in the Middle East.
However, the Iranian president emphasized: “We and our negotiators will never back down from Iran’s honor and sovereignty.” He said this in reference to the recent negotiations between Tehran and Washington.
3. Top American diplomat Marco Rubio suggested on Monday that a deal could be reached during the day – but a spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry replied: “No one can make such a claim.”
“We thought we might have some news last night, maybe today,” US Secretary of State Rubio was quoted by AFP as saying during a visit to Delhi, referring to hopes for a deal.
“We have what I think is a pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open the straits, open the straits,” Rubio said.
He added: “Either we get a good deal or we have to deal with it differently. We’d rather have a good deal.”
Read also | ‘Strategic allies’: Rubio’s message to India as Jaishankar raises visa issues
4. But Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei poured cold water on hopes for a quick final settlement.
At a weekly press briefing, he said: “It is correct to say that we have reached a conclusion on a large part of the issues under discussion. But to say that this means that the signing of the agreement is imminent – no one can make such a claim.”
Baqaei emphasized this Iran will continue to control maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz by charging service fees – arguing that this does not mean Tehran is “trying to collect tolls”.
“The services that are provided – navigation services apart from measures necessary to protect the environment of the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman – require the collection of certain fees,” he said.
Earlier on Saturday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman claimed that Iran and the US had come close to finalizing a 14-point memorandum to end the imposed war in talks brokered by Pakistan.
But he insisted A “rapprochement” does not mean that Iran and the US are going to reach an understanding. Rather, it means that “based on a set of parameters, both sides may be able to reach a win-win solution,” Mehr News reported.
5. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he said he and Trump agreed that “any final deal with Iran must completely eliminate the nuclear threat,” AFP reported.
“President Trump has made it clear that he will remain steadfast in negotiations on his longstanding demand to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program and remove all enriched uranium from Iranian territory, and that he will not sign a final deal unless those conditions are met,” the official said, referring to a conversation between the two leaders on Saturday night.
6. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif — whose government is spearheading efforts to broker a negotiated deal between the United States and Iran — met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
Sharif claimed on Monday that progress had been made in the ongoing talks between Iran and the United States, a Dawn report said.
Pakistani media quoted Sharif as saying “things are moving in the right direction” in the context of the US-Iranian talks.
Read also | Then Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif leaves for China on a four-day visit
Sharif, who is currently visiting China, said this while addressing the Great Hall of the People.
“We hope that peace will be restored and a lot of ground has already been covered; things are moving in the right direction,” Prime Minister Shehbaz said. During the dawn, he thanked the Chinese leadership for supporting Pakistan’s mediation efforts.
What’s on the latest menu?
Iran and the US are talking about a “memorandum of understanding” that sets out a plan to resolve any outstanding issues.
While the details of the memorandum remain unclear, CNN reported that a central premise of the approach is that once the memorandum is signed, stop the fightwith US President Donald Trump facing midterms later this year and Iran’s economy in crisis.
The report added that recent drafts of the memorandum of understanding, which appear “close” to completion, will see the gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and ending the US blockade Iranian ports.
The countdown would then begin to iron out other problematic points, such as Iran’s nuclear programthe message added.
Sources told CNN on Sunday that the framework agreement gives the parties “60 days to reach the final points of the agreement.“
They argued that the potential deal would ensure Iran could never possess a nuclear weapon and commit it to giving up highly enriched uranium, which the president often refers to as “nuclear dust.”
Read also | US-Iran News LIVE: Iran says peace deal framework reached, signing not imminent
However, Iran’s Baqaei email said on Monday that details of the nuclear issue had not been discussed.
On Saturday, Baqaei outlined the framework for the negotiations, saying: “Our approach was to first propose a memorandum of understanding consisting of 14 articles.”
“That memorandum would include the most important issues necessary to end the imposed war and matters that are fundamental to us,” he said, according to Mehr News and Press TV.
“Subsequently within a a reasonable period of 30 to 60 daysBoth sides would discuss the details of these matters and eventually reach a final agreement,” he added.
Read also | Trump Wants Iran to Join Abraham Accords: What Is It?
What is currently being negotiated?
The main issues in negotiation are:
- Nuclear weapons: US believes Iran wants to build a nuclear bomb. Iran has denied this. The US wants Iran to completely give up uranium.
- Ballistic Missiles: The US wants Iran to limit the range of its ballistic missiles so they cannot hit Israel. Iran has always refused to discuss its ballistic missiles.
- Strait of Hormuz: Iran sees its control over Hormuz, and Washington sees the blockade of Iranian ports as its main levers.
- Sanctions and frozen assets: Iran wants the US to lift sanctions and release tens of billions of dollars in Iranian oil revenue frozen in foreign banks. He also wants reparations for war damage.
1. According to ISNA, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Email Baqaei said on Monday that ongoing negotiations are currently focused on ending the war and that the details of the nuclear issue were not discussed.
2. On Strait of HormuzRubio said, “We’re still a work in progress … I think there’s a pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open the straits, open the straits and enter into a very real, meaningful time-bound negotiation on nuclear matters. And hopefully we can do that.”
3. An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman was quoted as saying on Saturday: “We are now at the finalization stage of this memorandum of understanding. The topics discussed at this stage are broadly focused on ending the war and stopping the war.” American naval aggression – what they themselves described as a “naval blockade” – and issues related to the release of blocked Iranian assets.”
4. Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency said on Sunday that differences “in one or two clauses of a possible memorandum of understanding still remain.”
