Trump says Iran peace deal could be signed by Sunday, with strait of Hormuz to open shortly after | US-Israel war on Iran
Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States was preparing to sign a new agreement with Iran the next day, claiming that the agreement would prevent Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons and reopen the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping.
One Real Social postTrump said Iran “no longer wants a Nuclear Weapon and will not have it through acquisition, development or other acquisition.”
The following statements were made in the statement: “The agreement is planned to be signed tomorrow, and immediately after it is signed, the Strait of Hormuz will be OPEN TO EVERYONE. Our relations with Iran are much different and better than the previous administrations… We hope that this process will be completed quickly, easily and smoothly. If not, we have the ultimate alternative that will never be used again!”
Iran, the United States and mediators had suggested early Saturday that a preliminary peace deal to end the three-month war in the Middle East could be signed within days, but gave different timelines and versions of the text.
Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Saturday that Islamabad is preparing for electronic signature within 24 hours, following which technical level talks will be held next week.
“We are closer than ever to a peace agreement… We are confident that this historic peace agreement will lay a strong foundation for lasting peace,” Sharif said. social media.
However, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei advised caution.
“We will have to wait and see the exact date of signing the memorandum of understanding, but it will not happen tomorrow,” Baghaei was quoted as saying. “The possibility of this happening in the coming days cannot be ruled out.”
In recent days, the most intense clashes have occurred between Iran, Israel and the USA since the ceasefire came into force in April.
Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to seize Iran’s oil export terminal on Kharg Island and launch a new wave of attacks, then suddenly claimed a diplomatic breakthrough by saying a draft deal had been “approved” by “the highest level of Iranian leadership.”
During the conflict, the US president claimed nearly 40 times that the deal was near completion, but then returned to threatening Iran with new attacks.
Officials from both the United States and Iran are trying to portray the potential deal as a victory, claiming it includes a series of major concessions from their foes.
Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister said on state television on Friday that the draft agreement showed his country emerged stronger from the conflict.
“Iran is the winner of the war with the United States,” he told the audience.
Hours after those statements, U.S. forces shot down several Iranian unidirectional attack aircraft heading toward the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway that carried about a fifth of the world’s oil and gas supplies before the conflict but was closed to most ships by Iran for several days after the conflict began.
Sources on both sides of the talks said the proposed agreement calls for reopening the strait and lifting the US naval blockade of Iranian ports. Negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program will take place later.
On Friday, Trump said a report on the draft agreement text published by Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency, citing a source close to Iran’s negotiating team, had “nothing to do with reality.”
According to Mehr and Iranian officials, the deal would end hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon, where Israel has launched an offensive against Hezbollah, and enable the release of $24bn (£18bn) of Iran’s frozen assets.
The agreement would also set a 60-day deadline for negotiations on Tehran’s nuclear program, propose a suspension of sanctions on the sale of Iranian oil and petrochemical products, allow Iran to charge service fees for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and lift the naval blockade of Iranian ports that the United States has imposed since April 13.
The claims were strikingly at odds with statements from Washington, where officials said the deal stipulated that Iran’s nuclear material would be destroyed and its nuclear program dismantled, that none of the frozen money would be released until certain demands were met, and that Iran would stop supporting allied militant movements in the Middle East.
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters on Friday that the deal met Trump’s key goals and put negotiations in a “very, very good place.”
The apparent agreement caused consternation in Israel; where Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu clashed with Trump over U.S. demands that Israel halt military action in Lebanon to allow Washington to reach a deal with Tehran.
Israeli forces carried out airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday and issued evacuation warnings for the city of Nabatieh and more than 20 other places ahead of the raids.
