The proposed memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran stipulates the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of the US blockade of Iranian ports, with negotiations to be held later on Iran's nuclear program, which was the pretext announced by US President Donald Trump for waging war, multiple sources confirmed.
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that the deal meets Trump's core goals and puts the negotiations "in a very good position."
Reports from Western, Pakistani and Iranian sources regarding the draft proposal have pointed to conditions that could be in Iran's favor, drawing criticism from Trump, who called the reports inaccurate.
While there were slight differences in the versions of the memorandum, they all appeared to accept the key items proposed by Tehran so far with Trump making little gain other than reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran closed after the U.S. and Israeli attacks in February.
Iranian media: The draft agreement with Washington includes Lebanon
Iranian media reported that the draft of the possible agreement between Tehran and Washington includes Lebanon, and consists of 14 items focused on nuclear and economic files, with the complete exclusion of Iran's missile program from the negotiating table.
Mehr News Agency reported that the draft includes the lifting of US sanctions, the withdrawal of US forces from Iran's periphery, the lifting of the naval blockade, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz within 30 days, in addition to the lifting of oil sanctions and the release of frozen Iranian assets.
The draft calls on the United States to submit a plan to rebuild Iran's economy, while stipulating that final negotiations should be limited to nuclear and economic issues only, and information indicates that Lebanon will be included in the ceasefire agreement, with sanctions suspended on the sale of oil and petrochemical products, and giving Tehran full access to its frozen funds.
The draft includes 60 days of negotiations to reach an agreement on nuclear activities and the lifting of primary and secondary U.S. sanctions, as well as resolutions from the Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency. It also stipulates the release of $24 billion in Iranian assets, including $12 billion before the start of negotiations.
The draft stresses that final negotiations will not begin unless oil sanctions are suspended and the naval blockade is lifted, while Iran is asked to reaffirm its commitment not to produce nuclear weapons, provided that the final agreement is limited to the file of enriched materials, enrichment, the lifting of sanctions, and the economic reconstruction program.
The agency confirms that the files of missiles and Iranian support for "resistance groups" have been completely removed from the agenda, and so far, no official comment has been issued by the parties concerned on this draft.
Araqchi: We may sign the memorandum of understanding within days
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said that there is a possibility of signing a memorandum of understanding with the United States digitally in the next few days.
In a statement to Iranian state television discussing the latest developments, Araqchi explained: "There is a possibility that the memorandum of understanding will be signed in the next few days," stressing that negotiations on the final agreement will not take place if the terms of the memorandum of understanding are not implemented, adding: "If the fate of uranium enriched to 60 percent is to be determined, the only way to do that is to reduce its concentration inside Iran."
Araqchi pointed out that the issues of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of the naval blockade imposed by the United States are included in the possible memorandum of understanding, stressing that "the management of the Strait of Hormuz will not be the same as it was in the past, the strait is under the sovereignty of Oman and Iran, and the two countries have been providing services in it for free until now."
"We have had positive discussions with the Sultanate of Oman on the management of the Strait of Hormuz, and our sword will continue to hang over the Strait of Hormuz," he said.
Araqchi also explained that a special mechanism has been set up to deal with the frozen Iranian assets, adding, "This agreement has enemies, foremost of which is the Israeli entity."
"If we were to back down because of threats to our infrastructure, we would have done so a long time ago, and if the terms of the memorandum of understanding are not implemented, there will be no negotiations on a final agreement," he concluded.
Trump republishes Araqchi's post
On Friday, US President Donald Trump republished a statement by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi on his social media account, in which he talked about the imminent reach of an agreement between the United States and Iran.
In his post on the American platform "X", Araqchi wrote that "the Islamabad memorandum of understanding has never been so close to completion."
Earlier, Trump accused Iran of falsely leaking the terms of the potential agreement to the media, writing in a post on his platform "Truth Social" on Friday that "the clauses that Iran leaked to fake news sources have nothing to do with the terms agreed in writing."
Israel is not a party to the MoU
U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf could sign the memorandum of understanding by next Sunday, a Western source said, with Geneva currently a favorite place to sign.
Araqchi said the agreement would be signed remotely before it was announced, while a US administration official said there had been discussions about the possibility of signing the agreement in Europe but no decision had been made yet.
Although Israel waged the war jointly with the United States, it has so far been excluded from the negotiations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would not be a party to the memorandum of understanding.
Netanyahu has clashed repeatedly with Trump in recent weeks over U.S. demand that Israel rein in its military operations in Lebanon to give Washington a chance to reach a deal with Tehran.
Araqchi said the agreement would end the war in Lebanon, meaning Israel would withdraw from the occupied territories, while Israel's war minister said Israel would not withdraw from Lebanese territory while a senior Israeli official said Israel expected any agreement to keep Israel free to act against what it sees as a threat in areas under its control.
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