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Negotiators from the United States and Iran have reached a draft 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and begin talks on Iran’s nuclear program, but President Donald Trump has not yet given final approval, Axios reported on May 28 citing two American officials and a regional source involved in the mediation effort.
The American officials told the news website that the terms of the agreement were largely finalized by June 2, pending approval from senior leaders on both sides.
They added that Iranian negotiators later informed mediators they had secured the necessary approvals and were ready to sign, although the Islamic Republic has not publicly confirmed that account.
“The president relayed to the mediators that he wants a couple of days to think about it,” one of the officials told Axios after Trump was briefed on the details of the proposed agreement.
The memorandum would guarantee unrestricted commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and require Iran to remove naval mines from the strategic waterway within 30 days, the report said.
“This means no tolls and no harassment,” an American official explained.
The agreement also includes an Iranian commitment not to pursue a nuclear weapon and outlines negotiations over Tehran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium and its enrichment activities. From its side, the U.S. will commit to discuss sanctions relief, the release of frozen Iranian assets and mechanisms to facilitate humanitarian aid deliveries to Iran, according to the report.
Commenting on the report, an Israeli official told Channel 14 that neither Trump nor Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has yet approved such an agreement.
“As far as we know, the agreement has not been approved by President Trump nor by Mojtaba Khamenei. If there is any agreement, at the moment it is still at the lower levels,” the official said.
Axios report was further played down by a diplomat from one of the countries involved in the mediation process, who told The Times of Israel that the report mischaracterizes the state of negotiations.
The diplomat said that progress has been made and a mutual agreement on a memorandum is close, but final answers haven’t been given by either side and therefore, it would not be accurate to state that both sides’ negotiators have reached an agreement.
Overnight another clash was reported in the Persian Gulf, with U.S. strikes hitting the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas and the Islamic Republic targeting four vessels that attempted to cross the Strait of Hormuz without coordination. An Iranian strike on Kuwait was reported later on in the day.
While an agreement appears to be more likely than ever, all is not yet done yet. The war could still resume, especially considering recent clashes, the hesitation from the direction of the Trump administration, and the clear Israeli desire to attack again.
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