Trump Pushes Iran Deal Toward Finish Line

Nils Huenerfuerst, Unsplash

President Donald Trump is closing in on a final U.S.-Iran agreement that officials say would stop the regime from ever building a nuclear weapon. A senior administration official told reporters on a Friday White House press call there is a “75 percent” chance the deal is signed in the coming days.

The official said a signing ceremony could be announced soon. Three regional officials separately told The Associated Press that the United States and Iran were close to signing an agreement aimed at ending their war, according to Newsmax.

The breakthrough comes after Iran exchanged fire with the U.S. and Israel over three days this week. That fighting threatened to return the Middle East to full-scale war.

What the Deal Would Do

The senior administration official laid out several major planks of the emerging agreement. The most important would prevent Iran from ever getting a nuclear weapon, a goal Trump has stressed throughout the conflict.

The first step would remove and destroy highly enriched uranium already inside Iran. “We want the highly enriched material destroyed and taken away from the country,” the official said, according to Breitbart News.

The official said IAEA inspectors and the United States would help destroy and remove the material. Technical details would be worked out after the memorandum of understanding (MOU) is signed.

The second plank would secure a long-term commitment from Iran not to build or buy a nuclear weapon. A third plank would set up an inspection system to make sure Iran does not rebuild its nuclear capacity years later.

How It Differs From the Old Deal

The official said this Iran nuclear program agreement is different from the 2015 deal known as the JCPOA, which Trump scrapped in his first term. The new agreement has no sunset clauses and offers no money to Iran until key benchmarks are met.

“In some ways I see this agreement as the antidote to the JCPOA,” the official said. The official added that the stockpile the old deal allowed is the very thing this deal would eliminate.

The official stressed a “verify, verify, verify” approach. Iran would not get the benefit of the bargain unless it performs.

A fourth plank aims to stop Iran from funding terrorism in the region. The official said the deal contemplates “a full regional peace deal,” including a ceasefire that covers Lebanon.

The official said if Hezbollah fires at Israel, Israel keeps the right to respond. Economic relief for Iran would be tied to Iran acting as a good actor in the region.

Trump spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the framework. Netanyahu’s office said Israel is not a party to the MOU but welcomed Trump’s commitment to remove enriched nuclear material, dismantle enrichment infrastructure, limit missile production, and end Iran’s support for terrorist proxies, Fox News reported.

The Strait of Hormuz and the Blockade

A fifth plank would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane for oil and natural gas. The official said the agreement is “quite explicit that the Strait of Hormuz will be open, the blockade will be lifted.”

The official noted there would be technical issues because Iran laid mines in the strait that must be removed. The U.S. began a naval blockade of Iranian ports in mid-April to choke off Iran’s oil exports.

Trump said this week that lifting the U.S. blockade is part of the deal. “Yes. That’s true. It’s part of the deal,” he told reporters in the Oval Office. If Iran complies, the official said, it will receive sanctions relief and financial incentives. But no money will be exchanged upon signing.

“We’re not paying to negotiate,” the official said. Relief would be tied to actual performance, such as removing enriched material or decommissioning nuclear facilities.

The official said the United States will not give Iran money. Instead, Gulf countries could invest in Iranian oil and gas infrastructure if Iran meets its obligations.

Vice President JD Vance is expected to attend the signing ceremony, which Trump said could take place in Europe, possibly Switzerland. Regional officials said the deal also includes the phased lifting of sanctions and the release of frozen Iranian assets.

Where the Accounts Differ

Iran has publicly pushed back on Trump’s claims. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Tehran has not made a final decision and dismissed reports of a signing ceremony as premature.

Baghaei said Iran will not compromise on its “red lines,” though he acknowledged much of the negotiating text was finished. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X that an agreement “has never been closer,” but gave no details and said a final deal was still pending.

Underscoring the fragility of the talks, Trump on Friday wrote on social media that Iranian officials “better get their act together, and FAST!” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that Israel could still act on its own and would not withdraw from zones it occupies in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza.

The war launched by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28 has rattled the Middle East and nearly shut down Persian Gulf oil shipments. A fragile ceasefire has been in place since April 7.

Regional officials said the deal was largely brokered by Pakistan, with backing from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, and Qatar. They expect a signing ceremony in the coming days, once officials in Washington and Tehran approve the final terms.

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