Here's the latest
• Diplomatic breakthrough: The US and Iran reached an agreement to end a US blockade of Iranian ports and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. A senior US official said President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance both virtually signed the agreement. No text has been released yet.
• What’s next: Both sides have offered conflicting accounts of what will follow a formal signing ceremony on Friday. Trump arrived in Europe today ahead of the G7 summit, where the agreement will be in the spotlight. Meanwhile, oil prices have fallen to their lowest levels in nearly three months, but recovery from the war’s economic impact could take months.
• Israeli reaction: Israel’s defense minister said its forces are not withdrawing from southern Lebanon, even though Iran has said the agreement includes an end to the conflict there. Trump was enraged with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for striking Beirut hours before the framework was announced, a source said.
Trump says Strait of Hormuz "already partially opened" and will fully open Friday
President Donald Trump said Monday that the Strait of Hormuz is “already partially opened” and that it will fully open Friday, when the US and Iran are set to formally sign a memorandum of understanding.
Though the US president publicly complained about European leaders’ unwillingness to join in the US-Israeli war against Iran, he suggested the strait would reopen without needing much aid from France.
“I don’t think we’re going to need much help, because we have an agreement where it’s going to be open, and it’s toll-free. We had a little argument on that; it’s toll-free,” he said, adding, “I don’t think it’s a bad idea to have a ship or two up here from a few countries.”
Ceasefires "inherently a little dirty," senior US official says
A senior US official said that ceasefires can be “a little dirty,” referencing the fire traded between Israel and Hezbollah and implying that it would not greatly impact the impending agreement between the United States and Iran.
“Ceasefires like this are inherently a little dirty. We’ve seen that in Lebanon, where you know there’s a significant reduction in the amount of fire coming from Hezbollah to Israel, and consequently coming from Israel into Lebanon, but it’s not zero,” one senior offiical said.
A senior administration official also told reporters on a Friday call: “Sometimes these ceasefires are a little messy, sometimes they take a little bit of time to take root.”
On the Monday call, the continued challenge of communicating any movement between both sides was also acknowledged as a factor at play.
“We saw even yesterday, there are going to be delays in getting some of the word about the deal through their system,” they said.
Text of US-Iran agreement will be released "pretty soon," Trump says
President Donald Trump said the text of the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran would be released publicly, likely after the formal signing ceremony planned for Friday.
Asked when the agreement would be released at a bilateral meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump said, “I think pretty soon. I would say — I mean, I want it to be released because it’s a very powerful document.”
“This is a very powerful document and I want it to be released. So probably pretty soon. I would say after sometime after Friday,” he said.
Pakistan’s foreign minister said a formal signing ceremony of the agreement will happen in the Swiss city of Geneva. Trump is in Europe on Monday for the G7 summit.
Economic relief to begin with "small gestures," US officials say, downplaying "side deals"
Senior US administration officials downplayed the prospect of any “side deals” aimed at unfreezing Iranian assets held in Gulf countries, but suggested the US is willing to make some “small gestures” to start to relieve sanctions.
Gulf coalition countries, one senior US official said, have been “very supportive” of the agreement between the US and Iran to begin intensive negotiations on some of the thornier outstanding issues to end the conflict.
Among those issues: Iran has reportedly demanded the release of $12 billion in frozen funds as soon as an interim agreement is signed with the US, and another $12 billion at a later stage.
Asked whether the agreement precluded a third country from immediately unfreezing Iranian assets, the senior official said, “You’re not going to see Qatar or UAE or any of these other countries cut side deals.”
Pointing to “close coordination” with those regional partners, the official added, “The idea that any of these countries would cut side deals with the Iranians, I think, is not just unlikely, but preposterous.”
A second senior official added that the US and Iran are in the “early phases” of “building trust,” but suggested that the US is “prepared to release frozen funds, and we are prepared to relieve sanctions.”
“We’ll do some small gestures of that in the beginning, if they make some small gestures to us that show that they’re willing to meet their commitments,” the official added.
The official declined to provide specifics on what that “small gesture” would be, but the first official later clarified that as of now, “$0 of unfrozen assets have been released by the United States or any other country.”
The US "knows where all the mines" in the Strait of Hormuz are, official says
The US “knows where all the mines” in the Strait of Hormuz are located, a senior US official said as efforts begin to get the critical oil thoroughfare back online.
Iran has placed naval mines throughout the strait, and detecting and destroying them, experts say, poses a complicating factor to safe transit.
Traffic in the strait, one senior US administration official said Monday, “will return to normal pretty quickly, definitely within 30 days, once they’ve committed to get rid of all the mines.”
The US, this official said, “(knows) where all the mines are at this point, and we actually could help them with the disposition.” They added that it would “open up a bunch more lanes” for oil tankers to traverse.
“We’ll be cautious, but we’re going to be super aggressive towards getting this open as quickly as possible, because that’s great for the world economy,” the official said.
Trump suggests he won't attend formal signing ceremony for Iran agreement
President Donald Trump suggested today that he would not attend a formal signing ceremony for the Iran agreement, set for Friday in Switzerland.
Trump, speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron at the G7 summit in Évian-les-Bains, said Vice President JD Vance would come to Geneva for the event.
“He was originally going to do it. I’ll probably be gone by then,” he said.
Earlier, a senior US official said both Trump and Vance had signed the deal virtually.
US-Iran agreement does not require Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon
The Trump administration’s agreement with Iran does not include a requirement that Israel withdraw from Lebanon, a senior US official said on Monday.
“Their withdrawal was not a condition of the deal,” the official said. “If Iran is not able to control Hezbollah, and if they attack, you know, Israeli positions or Israeli towns, Israel will have the right to defend themselves and respond.”
Israeli officials had earlier insisted that they would not back off the offensive in Lebanon. Israel has launched attacks against the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah there, despite suggestions from Iran that they be included in any broader ceasefire.
The US official on Monday voiced optimism that Israel and Lebanon would make progress in their own negotiations, but made clear that the continued fighting would not hold up the Trump administration’s pact with Iran.
“Both parties think that they’re being aggrieved by the other,” the official sad. “So hopefully we can find a way to create a new framework for the region based on modern times, modern aspirations.”
US will keep its current force posture in Middle East during technical talks, official says
The United States will keep its current force posture in the Middle East during the US-Iran technical negotiations, with a planned reduction if a final deal is reached, a senior US administration official said Monday.
“The agreement contemplates the reduction of military forces in the region upon the agreement of a final deal, which, again, is the agreement that we assume we can make,” they added.
The US has maintained a huge number of military assets, including two aircraft carriers and more than a dozen destroyers, in and around the region throughout the war.
Absence of supreme leader's signature not unusual, senior US official says
The absence of Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s signature on a memorandum of understanding is not unusual, but rather somewhat expected, a senior US official said today on a call with reporters.
“If you go back to the JCPOA, the supreme leader just doesn’t sign these agreements; that’s not really his role in their system,” the senior official said, referring to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action struck in 2015 during President Barack Obama’s administration.
That role, the senior official said in response to question from CNN’s Kevin Liptak, is understood to be taken by Iran’s chief negotiator and speaker of the parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who the US views as having “currently the most influence in their system.”
Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Ghalibaf signed the agreement digitally, senior officials said on the call.
Trump personally signed the deal “because he wanted to show his dedication to the process and dedication to seeing this through to a successful resolution,” the senior official said.
Full agreement between US and Iran will be released publicly, official says
The full memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran will be released publicly, a senior US administration official said today.
The official said details of the agreement would be put out in the next 24 to 48 hours.
“The MOU will be released publicly,” the official said. “One of our principles here is we want to have full transparency on this.”
While the Trump administration has revealed details about the plan, the full text has not been made public, even after the two sides signed it digitally on Sunday.
Trump encouraged Vance to take lead in negotiations with Iran, officials say
Vice President JD Vance assumed a central role in negotiations with Iran after President Donald Trump encouraged him to get directly involved in the diplomatic efforts, senior US officials said on Monday.
Vance led the push to finalize an agreement extending the two nations’ ceasefire, and is tentatively expected to attend an official signing ceremony in Switzerland later this week. The vice president will then lead the US side in its next phase of negotiations toward a permanent truce.
“Like most things that happen in the Trump administration, they’re driven directly from the top,” one of the officials said during a call with reporters. “But what we’ve tried to really do is build trust.”
Another senior official added that Vance had pre-established relationships with key mediators that proved helpful in the final stages of the talks. Vance’s presence also allowed the two countries to open up direct discussions at higher levels of government.
Iran’s top diplomat says Tehran distrusts US commitment ahead of possible Friday signing
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran remains deeply skeptical of Washington’s commitment to any deal, even as he acknowledged that a memorandum between Iran and the United States could be signed Friday in Switzerland.
Speaking after a joint meeting with members of the Iranian parliament’s Economic Commission, Araghchi said there would “likely” be a meeting in Switzerland between the heads of the Iranian and US delegations, during which the memorandum would be signed, followed by the first round of subsequent negotiations.
“We have a history of broken promises, non-implementation and agreements being torn up,” he said. “We are planning both the negotiation process and the implementation of any agreement on the basis of distrust, past breaches of commitments and previous experiences.”
Araghchi said the understanding “may create economic opportunities” for Iran, but he cautioned against making the country’s economy dependent on any agreement reached through negotiations with Washington.
He added that Iran would try to maximize the economic benefits of any agreement while avoiding overreliance on it.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of the Iranian parliament, also claimed Monday in a post on X that ” Iran has taken a major step toward final victory.”
He told Iranians that the victory has been achieved “through your historic resistance and the bravery of the (Iranian) armed forces.”
Strait of Hormuz will see "significant increase" in traffic within weeks, US official says
The Trump administration suggested Monday that it will take roughly “two weeks” to see a “significant increase” in traffic in the Strait of Hormuz following an agreement signed between the US and Iran.
“You will see significant increase in traffic in the Strait of Hormuz — actually starting already — and that will ramp up slowly over time, to the point where I think a week from now, two weeks from now, we probably won’t return to normal in two weeks, but we will see a significant increase in strait traffic,” a senior administration official said.
The US and Iran have said that the memorandum of understanding will reopen the critical oil thoroughfare that has been at a relative standstill for months, driving up oil and gas prices across the globe.
The official pointed to rapidly dropping crude oil prices Monday as a signal of “the consensus of the market on how quickly things will get back online.”
Israel struck car in southern Lebanon, state media reports
Israel struck a car in the southern Lebanese town of Kfar Tebnit on Monday afternoon, killing one person, according to a report in Lebanon’s state media outlet, the National News Agency.
The Israeli strike would be the first in Lebanon since the US and Iran reached a Pakistani-mediated agreement to end the US blockade on Iranian ports and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for comment.
Iran and Pakistan have said that the agreement with the US requires the termination of hostilities in Lebanon, and US President Donald Trump has previously said that the anticipated deal would “bring peace to the region, including to Lebanon.”
Yet Israel has maintained that it will not withdraw from the country. “Israel opposes any withdrawal of IDF forces from Lebanon, despite existing and expected pressure,” said Defense Minister Israel Katz on Monday, in an oblique acknowledgment that the agreement includes a provision on Lebanon.
Trump and Vance both signed Iran agreement, official says
President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance both virtually signed the Memorandum of Understanding with Iran, a senior US administration official says.
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf signed the document for the Iranian side, the official said.
A formal signing ceremony will still occur on Friday, the official said.
What happened in the run-up to the announcement of the US-Iran agreement
Yesterday, US President Donald Trump announced that “the Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete. Congratulations to all!”
The announcement came more than 15 weeks since the war between the US, Israel and Iran began, and during a fragile ceasefire that was tested by several exchanges of fire.
Here’s what happened yesterday in the run-up to the announcement:
- Israel carried out airstrikes on Hezbollah strongholds in southern Beirut in what it said was a response to fire into northern Israel. The attack marked the fourth time Israel attacked the Lebanese capital since a previous ceasefire with the country went into effect in mid-April.
- Israel informed the US in advance of the strike, an Israeli source told CNN. In a social media post, Trump said that the attack “should not have happened.”
- During a phone call with CNN political and global affairs analyst and Axios reporter Barak Ravid, Trump expressed his disagreement with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to strike Beirut, telling Ravid that “(Netanyahu) has no f**king judgement. I let him know that.”
- Meanwhile, Qatari negotiators in Tehran stayed there to ensure talks remained on track, a diplomat with knowledge of the situation told CNN.
- Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Sunday evening ET that “the Peace Deal between the United States of America and Islamic Republic of Iran has been REACHED.”
- Trump shortly thereafter made his announcement about the agreement on Truth Social. In another post about an hour later, he wrote that “this Great Deal will bring Peace and Security to the whole Region. Many presidents have tried to make Peace with Iran, and all have failed before me.”
- Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs said the text of a memorandum of understanding with the US had been finalized and would be formally signed Friday in Switzerland.
CNN’s Alejandra Jaramillo, Tim Lister, Eugenia Yosef, Charbel Mallo, Tal Shalev, Julia Benbrook, Casey Gannon, Mostafa Salem, Mohammed Tawfeeq and Max Saltman contributed to this reporting.
What world leaders have said about the US-Iran agreement
World leaders are welcoming the agreement reached by the United States and Iran that is expected to take effect on Friday.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the agreement is set to be signed by both parties on Friday in Geneva, Switzerland, upon the conclusion of the annual Group of Seven Nations (G7) summit in nearby Évians-les-Bains, France. Iran’s deputy foreign minister has also said further talks will take place in Switzerland after a formal signing ceremony on Friday.
As reported earlier by CNN, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani — who emerged throughout the war as a skilled mediator and diplomat — expressed his hope for all parties to engage “in a positive and constructive spirit that will help consolidate this progress and build upon it.” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the progress an “important step.”
Here are some more reactions from around the world:
- Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres expressed his “deep appreciation” to several mediating nations, including Pakistan, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia, calling the agreement in an X post “a critical step towards the peaceful settlement of the conflict.”
- French President Emmanuel Macron called for a “swift and full implementation” of the memorandum in a post on X, while also notably singling out French support “to the determined efforts of the Lebanese authorities to restore state sovereignty,” as Lebanese involvement in the conflict remains a key sticking point to any ceasefire agreement.
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan welcomed the framework agreement, but emphasized “the importance of refraining from rhetoric, provocations and actions that could escalate tensions, and of remaining vigilant against possible acts of sabotage until the day the signatures are affixed,” according to Turkish state-run Anadolu Agency.
- Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said his country welcomes the agreement, adding China hopes that the Strait of Hormuz “can resume opening as soon as possible.”
- Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said he appreciated the framework’s “respect for Lebanese sovereignty,” adding that the Lebanese people hope this agreement translates into “practical steps that will put a definitive end to the cycle of violence.”
- Iraq’s Foreign Ministry said the country welcomes the US-Iran agreement, adding that Iraq is “committed to repairing” relations with neighboring states that were affected by the war.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz welcomed the “window for diplomacy.” He insisted further negotiations “must ensure that Iran verifiably and permanently ends its military nuclear programme,” adding any complete agreement “must” involve Lebanon.
- Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong encouraged all parties “to use this opportunity to pursue a durable and lasting peace through dialogue and diplomacy,” while maintaining that Iran should also seize the opportunity to “address longstanding concerns about its nuclear program and the threat it poses to international security.”
- The European Union’s chief diplomat Kaja Kallas said the agreement “marks a potential breakthrough” that could give space for deeper negotiations on the issue of Iran’s nuclear program. But she cautioned: “The toughest phase of the talks still lies ahead.”
This post has been updated with additional statements.
CNN’s Jerome Taylor, Julian Silva-Forbes, Seb Shukla and Lauren Kent contributed to this report
Vance says Iranians "could have access" to $300B reconstruction fund, with conditions
Vice President JD Vance said that the Iranians “could have access” to a $300 billion reconstruction fund — which he said would be funded by Gulf nations — but only if certain obligations are met.
“That’s the sort of thing they could have access to, funded by the Gulf Coast coalition, so long as they honor their end of the obligation,” Vance told CBS this morning.
Vance warned that “the hardliners in the Iranian system will overemphasize the benefits that Iran gets, while underemphasizing all the things that they have to concede” in order to be eligible for those benefits.
While Vance said the United States is “open to a lot of things that are on the table,” he denied that Iran receiving $24 billion in frozen funds is part of the agreement text — which has yet to be released.
Iran hawks are particularly sensitive to the US granting Tehran access to additional money as part of the agreement. The Obama administration unfroze assets as part of its prior deal with Iran, spurring widespread criticism that it was helping to fund Iran’s terrorist proxies.
In multiple TV interviews Monday morning, the vice president asserted that more granular and technical details will be worked out in continued negotiations after an agreement signing. He repeatedly emphasized that Iran would only be given access to funds if they upheld their commitments not to build or procure a nuclear weapon.
“We’re willing to talk about unfreezing assets,” Vance said on CBS. “But a much bigger deal is unsanctioning their economy so long as they make the long-term commitments on the nuclear program.”
Vance says comparisons to Obama-era Iran deal are misplaced
Vice President JD Vance sought to draw a distinction between the Iran agreement reached by President Donald Trump and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action struck in 2015 during President Barack Obama’s administration.
He said in some ways the comparisons were misplaced since Trump entered discussions with Tehran having already bombed key Iranian nuclear sites last year.
“We have comprehensively destroyed their nuclear program, and this agreement is about ensuring that they don’t rebuild it,” he said on CBS News. “The JCPOA was fundamentally about bribing them to stop the construction or to cease a nuclear program that was already in progress. It’s a very different background, a very different sort of leverage and I think really a different outcome for the American people.”
The general outline of the JCPOA, which had international support but was controversial in the US when it was reached, was that Iran would limit its nuclear ambitions, cap its uranium enrichment and allow international inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to inspect its sites in exchange for the lifting of some sanctions on its oil wealth and unfreezing billions in frozen Iranian assets.
Trump is now in Europe for G7 summit after announcing Iran agreement. Here's the latest
US President Donald Trump has arrived in Europe ahead of the G7 summit, which is taking place in France. His visit comes after he announced yesterday that the US and Iran had come to an agreement aimed at ending hostilities.
If you’re just joining us, here’s the latest:
- US Vice President JD Vance said the agreement with Iran had been signed electronically over the weekend, suggesting its terms are now in place and that Iran is not receiving any new financial relief.
- Vance said the Trump administration’s goal is to release the exact text of the agreement with Iran sometime in the coming days.
- The vice president also said that the permanent toll-free reopening of the Strait of Hormuz will be discussed in continued “technical negotiations,” indicating that the issue is not yet ironed out.
- For its part, Iran intends to collect “fees” for maritime services offered in the waterway once it is opened, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said, noting that the country is “not seeking to collect transit tolls.”
- Meanwhile, Trump said today that ships are beginning to move freely out of the Strait of Hormuz, despite previously saying that the strait would reopen on Friday.
- Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah has said it welcomes the US-Iran agreement, but warned that the group will “not accept” any further attacks that “violate national sovereignty.”
CNN’s Kevin Liptak, Kit Maher, Nadeen Ebrahim and Aida Karimi contributed to this reporting.
