Trump says – President Donald Trump said a proposed deal with Iran—covering the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz—is “largely negotiated,” with final details still being discussed. The comments come as the U.S. weighs new attacks that could break a ceasefire and as Pa
By the time Donald Trump posted about the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday morning, the message carried a familiar urgency: a deal was close, but the last pieces were still being argued over behind closed doors.
Trump said the war-related agreement with Iran—including opening the Strait of Hormuz—had been “largely negotiated” after calls with Israel and other allies in the region. “Final aspects and details of the Deal are currently being discussed. and will be announced shortly. ” he wrote on social media. without offering any specifics.
He framed the effort as a “Memorandum of Understanding pertaining to PEACE” that would still need to be finalized by the United States. Iran and the other countries that participated in the calls. He said he spoke with leaders from Saudi Arabia. the United Arab Emirates. Qatar. Pakistan. Turkey. Egypt. Jordan and Bahrain. and separately with Israel.
Trump did not mention Iran’s nuclear program or highly enriched uranium—issues Iran has said it wants to discuss at a later stage. There was no immediate comment from Iran or Israel. Trump also said his conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has pressed the U.S. to go to war, “went ‘very well.’”.
That certainty came after a week in which the U.S. weighed a new round of attacks on the Islamic Republic that could break a fragile ceasefire. It also came with the U.S. still signaling that decisions could move quickly. An American decision now hinges not only on what’s being negotiated. but on what’s being left out—at least for the moment.
A regional official with direct knowledge of Pakistan-led mediation said the U.S. and Iran were closing in on a deal to end the war. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss closed-door deliberations, cautioned that “last-minute disputes” could derail the effort. The official said the deal would include an official declaration of the war’s end. with two-month negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program. It would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and include an end to the U.S. blockade of Iran’s ports.
In Tehran, Iran offered a narrower view of what is happening now. Iran state TV earlier quoted Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei describing the draft as a “framework agreement” and saying: “We want this to include the main issues required for ending the imposed war and other issues of essential importance to us. Then, over a reasonable time span, between 30 to 60 days, details are discussed and ultimately a final agreement is reached.”.
Baghaei said the Strait of Hormuz is among the topics being discussed. But he also told Iran’s official IRNA news agency that nuclear issues are not part of current negotiations. “Our focus at this stage is on ending the war on all fronts. including Lebanon. ” he said. adding that lifting sanctions on Tehran “has explicitly been included in the text and remains our fixed position.”.
A separate report from Iran’s Hezbollah-linked Al-Manar TV said the Lebanese militant group’s leader received a letter from Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying Tehran will not abandon its allies. That message landed amid a fragile, U.S.-brokered ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon. That Lebanon conflict began two days after the Iran war started.
The Trump administration has said it was holding off on a military strike against Iran because “serious negotiations” were underway, and at the request of allies in the Middle East. Trump has repeatedly set deadlines for Tehran and then backed off.
Outside the diplomatic channels, Pakistan’s role has become part of the immediate story. Qatar sent a senior official to Tehran to support Pakistan’s efforts. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed Trump’s efforts to advance peace in the Middle East on Sunday. saying Pakistan would continue supporting peace efforts “with utmost sincerity. ” and “we hope to host the next round of talks very soon.” In a post on X. Sharif congratulated Trump for what he called his “extraordinary efforts to pursue peace” and described discussions among regional leaders as “very useful and productive.”.
The diplomacy unfolds against a grim timeline. Twelve weeks have passed since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, killing top Iranian officials including its supreme leader and interrupting nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran for the second time in less than a year. Iran fired at Israel and at neighbors hosting U.S. forces, shaking Gulf nations that had considered themselves safe havens in a tough region.
A ceasefire has held since April 7, but Iran’s decision to effectively close the Strait of Hormuz for ships carrying regional oil, natural gas and other critical supplies has been a focal point of global concern and economic pain.
Even with an emerging roadmap for the war’s end. the political promises that drove the conflict in the first place have not been achieved. The war’s stated aims have not been met: Iran still has its enriched uranium and a missile program it says is being rebuilt. It continues to express support for armed proxies in the region. The new supreme leader—though still unseen publicly since the war began—is the son of the previous one and close to the powerful Revolutionary Guard.
There is also a different kind of evidence on the ground that Trump and Netanyahu had predicted would appear if pressure on Iran intensified. The Iranian people have not revolted against the government as both Trump and Netanyahu had predicted after nationwide protests early this year.
Saturday’s comments included another warning from inside Iran. Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, the lead negotiator in historic face-to-face talks with the U.S. last month in Islamabad. said Iran has rebuilt its military assets and that if Trump resumed attacks. the result would be “more crushing and more bitter” than at the start of the war.
Qalibaf’s remarks followed meetings inside Iran’s leadership circle. State TV said he spoke after meeting with Pakistan’s army chief. who also met with Araghchi. President Masoud Pezeshkian and other senior officials. The photo shared by the Iranian Presidency Office showed Pezeshkian, right, speaking with Pakistan’s Army Chief Field Marshal Gen. Asim Munir in Tehran, Iran, on Saturday, May 23, 2026.
The dispute now appears to be less about whether the next steps exist and more about whether the final wording can survive the last hour. Trump says “Final aspects and details” are being discussed and will be announced shortly. A regional official says “last-minute disputes” can still blow up the effort. And with Iran insisting nuclear issues are not part of current negotiations—even as the two-month nuclear discussions are slated for later—the gap between what each side emphasizes remains the clearest pressure point in the entire process.
Donald Trump Iran Strait of Hormuz ceasefire Pakistan mediation Benjamin Netanyahu Masoud Pezeshkian Esmail Baghaei Abbas Araghchi Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf Asim Munir Hezbollah U.S. blockade