Trump touts imminent Iran deal that would reopen Hormuz Strait

(Bloomberg) — US President Donald Trump said a peace deal with Iran was nearing completion and that the reopening of the strategic Strait of Hormuz would be announced shortly, even as an Iranian media outlet cast doubt on the claim.

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“An Agreement has been largely negotiated, subject to finalization between the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the various other Countries,” Trump wrote Saturday in a social media post.

Axios reported the pact would involve a 60-day extension of the current ceasefire, during which the strait would be reopened and Iran be allowed to sell its oil. Further negotiations would follow on Tehran’s nuclear program, Axios said, citing a US official.

The draft also stipulates that the parallel war between Israel and Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon would end — a step Israel may be reluctant to endorse.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported some of the same details and elaborated on others, including a possible waiver of oil sanctions that would extend to petrochemicals. There were, however, mixed signals from Tehran on the state of negotiations.

Iranian officials have said talks with the US on ending fighting are progressing, and that other key points of contention could be ironed out later. But the semi-official Fars news agency early Sunday dismissed Trump’s claim of an imminent deal as “far from reality.” It didn’t cite anyone.

The future status of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas typically flow, remains pivotal. Its effective closure in the wake of the US and Israel launching their war on Iran on Feb. 28 has spurred a global energy crisis, piling economic pressure on governments far from the Middle East.

The Islamic Republic wants to levy ships transiting the strait and is urging the US to release a “significant portion” of its assets that are frozen overseas. It’s also rejecting demands to give up its uranium and halt enrichment, insisting it has no intention of building an atomic bomb.

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Pakistan and regional neighbors including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey and Qatar have been playing roles in the negotiations that seek to extend a fragile six-week-old ceasefire. Trump on Saturday spoke with some of their leaders about what he called a “Memorandum of Understanding pertaining to PEACE.”

Thousands of people have been killed since the conflict erupted, mostly in Iran and Lebanon. Iran responded by targeting Persian Gulf countries with drones and missile attacks.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Saturday that Washington remains adamant Iran can never have a nuclear weapon and must surrender its highly enriched uranium.

“The president’s preference is always to solve problems such as these through a negotiated diplomatic solution,” he told reporters during a trip to India.

The United Arab Emirates has joined Qatar and Saudi Arabia in appealing to Trump to allow more time for negotiations, according to several people familiar with the matter.

With no end to the conflict, oil prices remain elevated above $100 a barrel. Higher fuel bills in the US are adding to domestic political pressure on Trump to make a deal, particularly ahead of November midterm elections that will determine control of Congress.

But by making an agreement, the president also risks the perception of a strategic defeat for the US. Some of Trump’s most hawkish allies are urging him to continue the bombing campaign until all his stated objectives are met.

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–With assistance from Salma El Wardany.