Trump says draft deal includes opening Strait of Hormuz, Fars says Hormuz remains under Iran’s control
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian meets with Defense Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir in Tehran. PHOTO: REUTERS
ISLAMABAD:
Iran and the United States are moving closer to signing a tentative deal aimed at ending the war after Pakistan’s defense chief and army chief, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, made what is being described as the most consequential move in ongoing mediation efforts.
Although there was no formal announcement from either side of a breakthrough yet, there were enough indications that an interim agreement was not far off.
US President Donald Trump said a deal with Iran had been “largely negotiated”, with the proposal including opening the crucial Strait of Hormuz, although the deal was “subject to finalisation”.
“A deal has been largely negotiated, subject to completion between the United States, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the various other countries,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, listing a number of Middle Eastern powers along with Turkey and mediator Pakistan.
“In addition to many other elements of the agreement, the Strait of Hormuz will be opened.”
Among the Middle Eastern countries whose leaders joined a call Saturday to discuss the deal were Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain, Trump said.
He added that he had a separate call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying it “likewise went very well.”
“The final aspects and details of the agreement are currently being discussed and will be announced shortly,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Fars news agency reported on Sunday that the Strait of Hormuz would remain under Iran’s management, according to the latest text exchanged between Iran and the United States.
It dismissed US President Donald Trump’s announcement to reopen the strait as part of a “largely negotiated” deal as “incomplete and inconsistent with reality”.
His upbeat remarks came after Iranian officials said gaps remained between the parties and that the dispute over its nuclear program would not be part of the initial talks. Tehran said it was finalizing a 14-point framework for a deal.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei noted what he called “a trend towards rapprochement” but said “it does not necessarily mean that we and the US will reach an agreement on the important issues”.
“Our intention was to first draw up a memorandum of understanding, a kind of framework agreement consisting of 14 clauses,” he said on state television.
Baqaei added that he hoped the details of a final agreement could be worked out “within a reasonable time frame between 30 and 60 days” after the framework is completed.
Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf had earlier warned that Washington would face a tough response if it resumed hostilities after US media reports raised the prospect of new attacks and Iranian officials accused the US side of making “excessive demands”.
“Our armed forces have rebuilt themselves during the ceasefire period in such a way that if Trump commits another folly and restarts the war, it will certainly be more crushing and bitter for the United States than on the first day of the war,” Ghalibaf said.
Weeks of negotiations, including historic face-to-face talks hosted by Islamabad, have still not produced a permanent solution or restored full access to the Strait of Hormuz, which chokes vast amounts of global oil supplies.
That impasse has left ordinary Iranians in limbo.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a call with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Tehran was committed despite “repeated betrayal of diplomacy and military aggression against Iran, along with contradictory positions and repeated exaggerated demands” from Washington.
Araghchi held a flurry of diplomatic calls and spoke with counterparts from Turkey, Iraq, Qatar and Oman, Iran’s official IRNA news agency said.
Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani also spoke with Trump on Saturday, as well as with the UAE president and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
An official Qatari statement said Sheikh Tamim and the Saudi prince discussed efforts “to calm the situation and promote political solutions.”
The apparent breakthrough on the likely memorandum of understanding (MoU) was reached during Field Marshal Munir’s visit to Tehran, where he held a series of high-level engagements with the Iranian leadership.
His visit was widely seen as the final push to seek a diplomatic solution to the Iran-US war.
Since Pakistan began mediating between Tehran and Washington, Islamabad on Saturday issued perhaps its most positive statement yet, signaling meaningful progress in the talks.
The international news agency Reuters also reported signs of progress in the talks. Citing Pakistani sources involved in the talks, Reuters said the deal negotiated was “quite comprehensive to end the war.”
Iran further fueled speculation of an imminent breakthrough when the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tehran was in the “finalization phase” of the memorandum of understanding.
“We are in the finalization phase of this memorandum of understanding,” the spokesman said, according to Iran’s official news agency IRNA.
“The issues discussed at this stage are generally focused on ending the war. The issue of ending the US naval strike – what they themselves refer to as the naval blockade – and issues related to the release of blocked Iranian assets are among the main issues addressed in this memorandum of understanding,” the spokesman added.
Sources close to the negotiations had previously told the Washington Times that a draft proposal had been approved by top negotiators, including Vice President JD Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, and sent to the leaders for final signature. Trump’s remarks appeared to confirm that the process was now in its final hours.
The talks reportedly rely on a 14-point document proposed by Iran, which has served as the main framework for discussions and messages between the two sides.
Among other provisions, the framework would involve Iran committing to a moratorium on nuclear enrichment, the United States agreeing to lift sanctions and release billions in frozen Iranian funds, and both sides gradually lifting restrictions on transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which about 20 percent of the world’s oil normally flows.
The war itself began in February 2026, when US and Israeli strikes targeted Iranian military infrastructure. Iran retaliated across the region, closing the Strait of Hormuz, triggering a global energy shock. In early April, Trump threatened to destroy Iranian civilization completely, deadlines set for March 21, then March 23, then April 7, as diplomats scrambled for an opening.
Pakistan provided that opening. On 8 April, Islamabad brokered a conditional two-week ceasefire. Trump himself confirmed it, naming Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as the Pakistanis who had persuaded him to resign. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was equally warm, publicly thanking Pakistan for its tireless efforts on behalf of the Islamic Republic.
With a ceasefire in place, Pakistan quickly moved to host formal talks. On April 11 and 12, delegations from the United States and Iran met at the Islamabad Serena Hotel.
The US team was led by Vice President JD Vance, accompanied by Witkoff and Kushner; Iran sent a delegation led by Parliament Speaker Qalibaf.
The talks ran for 21 hours, and while both sides reported progress on most points, two issues proved intractable: the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program. No agreement was reached. No memorandum was signed.
(With input from agencies, News Desk)
