Iran-US Deal to Be Signed Remotely Within Days

The United States and Iran indicated on Friday that an agreement to end their conflict is near. A senior US administration official said the two sides have agreed on a text and that Washington expects to sign a preliminary deal within days.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that while changes to the agreement were still possible, the preliminary deal showed that his country had emerged stronger from the conflict. "Iran is the winner of the war with the US", he said on state television.

The proposed memorandum of understanding provides for the reopening of the strait and the lifting of the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, sources on all sides of the negotiations said. Negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, which US President Donald Trump has cited as the reason for starting the war, would only take place afterwards.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that the deal meets Trump's main objectives and puts the negotiations "in a very, very good place".

Araghchi said Iran, along with Oman, would retain control of traffic through the strait, through which one-fifth of the world's oil and gas supplies passed before the war. "Our sword will always hang over the Strait of Hormuz", he said.

A Western source said the agreement could be signed as early as Sunday by US Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Kalibaf, with Geneva seen as the most likely venue. A US administration official said Europe had been discussed as a location but that no decision had been made. Arakchi said the agreement would be signed remotely before being announced.

(reuters, luc)