WASHINGTON — The US and Iran are nearing agreement on a memorandum of understanding to end their nine-and-a-half-week war and lay out plans for talks about the future of the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program, a Pakistani source familiar with mediation efforts told The Post Wednesday.
“There are documents,” the source said, referring to multiple versions of the potential agreement. “Which one will be approved is under discussion.”
Separately, Reuters quoted a Pakistani source as saying of a potential deal: “We will close this very soon. We are getting close.”
The memorandum, first reported by Axios, is being negotiated by Trump special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and would declare an end to the conflict while opening a 30-day window to hash out a final agreement to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz, ease US sanctions on Iran and regulate the Middle Eastern nation’s nuclear program.
US sources familiar with mediation efforts have repeatedly told The Post the parties needed to “get something on paper” before any deal could be seriously considered.
The movement toward ending hostilities emerged after President Trump abruptly announced an end to his “Project Freedom” initiative to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to global shipping after just two days, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that the US campaign against Iran was “over.”
Rubio also said during a White House news conference that “the time has come for Iran to make a sensible choice, and it’s not easy for them to do that, obviously, because they have a fracture in their own leadership system.
“And apart from that, I mean, the top people in that government are – to say the least, they’re insane in the brain. And so we need to address that, and it’s difficult because it’s hard to get past that in their system.”
Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had told reporters at the Pentagon earlier Tuesday that the US assessed that the hardline Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was in control of Iran’s government rather than nominal Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
In a sign of the division inside Iran’s leadership, Seyed Mohammad Marandi, an academic who was part of the delegation that traveled to Pakistan for an initial round of peace talks last month, dismissed the Axios report on X as “a tool for White House market manipulation.”
“The Islamic Republic is fully prepared for a potential major attack before Trump’s trip to China [May 14-15],” added Marandi, who subsequently claimed to The Post no Iranian version of the draft memorandum exists.
News of the progress in peace talks caused the benchmark Brent crude oil price to plummet below $100 per barrel Wednesday morning, its lowest point in two weeks.
Trump had estimated in an interview with conservative talk radio host Hugh Hewitt that the war could last “another two weeks” or “maybe three weeks,” but gave a more optimistic update 24 hours later.
“Based on the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran, we have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom (The Movement of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed,” Trump announced on Truth Social Tuesday evening.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif responded on X early Wednesday that he was “grateful to President Donald Trump for his courageous leadership and timely announcement” — and revealed that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had also asked Trump to shelve the forced strait reopening to give negotiations a chance.
