
3 months · 40 summary articles
The United States and Iran on Tuesday moved to formalise a 60-day negotiating framework that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and ease sanctions, but sharp discrepancies over what was agreed threatened to derail the fragile détente hours after the first high-level talks concluded in Switzerland.
Speaking in Washington, President Donald Trump said Iran had accepted “inspections into infinity” of its nuclear programme and that $6 billion in frozen funds held in Qatar would be unlocked for purchases of US medical supplies and crops. “If Iran violates the agreement, I’ll do what I have to do,” Trump warned, adding that the Strait of Hormuz was now open and that Iran would never possess nuclear weapons. He also criticised NATO allies for failing to support the US during the recent conflict, telling reporters in the Oval Office that “they were not there for us.”
Tehran immediately contradicted Washington’s account. Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf declared that the Islamic Republic would manage Hormuz itself, while the Foreign Ministry said missile capabilities had never been on the table and that damaged nuclear sites would not be opened to International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors. Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran’s president-elect, insisted that strict adherence to the Islamabad Understanding was essential for talks to succeed, warning that any deviation could derail efforts to end the war in Lebanon and secure safe passage through the strait.
Oman and Iran announced the creation of a joint foreign-ministry committee to negotiate the future administration of Hormuz, reaffirming safe passage while asserting sovereign rights over their territorial waters. The move follows technical talks in Burgenstock, Switzerland, that concluded on Monday, with both sides agreeing to establish working groups and implementation mechanisms. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who mediated the process, said the first high-level US-Iran committee meeting had made “encouraging progress,” including a 60-day roadmap to a final deal and the formation of a political oversight committee.
G7 leaders last week endorsed the US-Iran memorandum of understanding, praising its framework for easing energy market volatility. Crude futures have eased as initial tanker movements resume, but analysts warn the agreement formalises a two-tier maritime system in which state-aligned energy flows receive preferential treatment. The Pentagon has asked Congress for roughly $80 billion to cover the cost of the Iran conflict, while South Africa’s MTN Group said it could finally exit its stake in Irancell if sanctions relief materialises.
Trump also announced that Americans would be allowed to buy Iranian oil for the first time since the 1980s, a move he said would benefit US farmers. Iran’s central bank governor, however, stated that Tehran was not obligated to purchase American agricultural goods, contradicting the president’s claim that released funds were earmarked for US crops. The discrepancies underscored the fragile nature of the accord, with both sides trading competing narratives hours after the talks concluded.
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