Key facts
- Iran's Foreign Minister stated a proposed memorandum of understanding with the US includes a mechanism for releasing frozen funds.
- Iran's Foreign Minister rejected media reports about the deal's text as invalid and stated the US would pledge not to start a war.
- Iran's Foreign Ministry dismissed a reported 14-point peace deal text as speculation.
- President Trump accused Iran of leaking false peace deal terms.
- Iran's military asserts control over the Strait of Hormuz.
- India summoned a U.S. diplomat over attacks in the Strait of Hormuz that killed three Indian nationals.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that a proposed memorandum of understanding with the US includes a mechanism for Iran’s frozen funds, while rejecting media reports about the text of the deal as invalid. Speaking to Iranian media, Araghchi said Tehran and Washington do not endorse the versions of the agreement circulating publicly, adding that none of them are “valid.” He said the two sides would reach an agreement only when both were satisfied with the final text.
Araghchi added that negotiators had raised reconstruction as part of a wider economic reconstruction and development plan, which would be settled in later talks. He said Iran would not retreat under pressure or threats, stating, “If you want us to go to war, we are ready.” Araghchi also said the agreement had “enemies, and the Zionist regime is at the top of them, and it is looking for obstacles to disrupt it.” He added that, under the MoU, the US would pledge not to start a war and not to use threats.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump had claimed that air strikes on Iran were called off due to an imminent peace deal. However, Iran's Foreign Ministry dismissed a reported 14-point peace deal text as speculation, asserting that while the main body of the preliminary deal was finalized, the US was being greedy and raising new demands. Trump subsequently accused Iran of leaking dishonorable and untrustworthy terms.
Iran's military asserted control over the Strait of Hormuz, stating no vessel can enter without permission. India summoned a US diplomat to protest attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz that resulted in three Indian deaths, while US military forces have been enforcing a blockade in the strait, redirecting 136 ships and disabling nine.
Analyst Negar Mortazavi commented that the US-Israel war on Iran has solidified Iran's military-intelligence apparatus and failed to achieve US goals, pushing the US back to the negotiating table. Iran's state media reported that a US-Iran deal must obligate Israel to end the war on Lebanon, and that Iran's frozen funds would be released upon signing, with sanctions and nuclear issues deferred to later negotiations.