Washington, United States. The United States and Iran have reached an agreement to end their war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, President Donald Trump said on Sunday, marking a major development in a conflict that has killed thousands and disrupted global energy markets since February.
Trump said the memorandum of understanding would be signed officially on Friday in Switzerland and that the strait would reopen the same day, while the United States would end its blockade of Iranian ports.
Announcement and market reaction
Trump announced the agreement on Truth Social, writing that the deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran was complete and calling for shipping and oil flows to resume.
Following the announcement, Brent crude futures fell 4% in early Monday trading, while Asian stock markets rose.
Mediation and ceasefire terms
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose country mediated throughout the conflict, announced the deal on X in the early hours of Monday local time. He said the pact called for the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretariat confirmed that war and military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon, would end permanently from Monday night.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, said a broader agreement, including sanctions relief for Tehran, would be negotiated during a 60-day ceasefire period.
Unclear details on nuclear programme and assets
The precise terms of the memorandum were not immediately disclosed. The fate of Iran’s nuclear programme, one of the most contentious issues in the talks, is to be addressed in subsequent negotiations, according to sources previously cited by Reuters.
A US official, speaking before the announcement, said the agreement would ultimately lead to the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear programme, with its stockpile of highly enriched uranium destroyed and removed.
A senior Iranian official gave a different account, saying the draft deal would allow Iran to dilute its enriched uranium inside the country. Iran has consistently denied seeking to build a nuclear weapon.
Iran has accumulated more than 400 kg of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade purity since withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear accord after Trump abandoned it during his first term.
A senior Iranian official also said that, under the draft terms, the United States would release $25 billion in frozen Iranian assets, though the Trump administration has previously said any such release would only follow Iran fulfilling specific conditions.
Israel response
Israel did not immediately comment on the agreement. The conflict in Lebanon had remained a key sticking point in negotiations, with Israel and Hezbollah continuing to fight despite repeated calls for restraint.
