The United States and Iran have reached a deal to end their war, US President Donald Trump and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif declared on Sunday, with the formal signing now set for Friday, June 19, in Switzerland.
“The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform around 5:30pm Washington time on Sunday — about 1:30am Sri Lanka time on Monday — shortly after Sharif posted on X that the framework calls for “the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon”. Pakistan has served as the lead mediator alongside Qatar throughout the conflict, which began when US and Israeli forces first attacked Iran on February 28.
The Strait of Hormuz — through which roughly 20% of the world’s seaborne oil and liquefied natural gas normally transits, and which Iran has effectively blockaded for months — will be open “toll free”, Trump said, ending Tehran’s insistence on transit fees. The US naval blockade of Iranian ports will also be lifted. “Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!” Trump wrote. The toll-free framing resolves a central tension in last week’s draft, when Iran’s Foreign Ministry had argued it would have to “charge for services in the strait”.
Under the terms previewed by Reuters, the United States will release US$25 billion of frozen Iranian assets while Iran agrees not to produce or acquire nuclear weapons. Tehran will maintain the nuclear status quo — no further uranium enrichment, no expansion of nuclear facilities — until a final agreement is reached during a 60-day window of additional talks. A US official said the framework would ultimately lead to the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear programme, with Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium destroyed and removed; a senior Iranian official said the deal would allow Iran to dilute the material inside the country. Qatari negotiators flew to Tehran on Sunday morning to help finalise the text. The completion announcement supersedes last week’s framework reporting, when Pakistan said the text was reached and electronic signing was expected within 24 hours — the signing has now been moved to a formal ceremony in Switzerland.
The agreement was sealed despite an Israeli strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut on Sunday that drew criticism from both Tehran and Washington. “This morning’s attack on Beirut should not have happened, particularly on a special day when we are so close to a Peace Deal with Iran,” Trump wrote. Iranian negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on X that Israel’s attack showed the US lacked “the will and ability to fulfill your commitments”, and Iran’s foreign ministry held the United States responsible for the strike, warning of a “strong response” with its top joint military command saying the “finger (is) on the trigger”. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has differed with Trump over US demands that Israel curb its action in Lebanon; Israel said it is not a party to the deal and will retain freedom of operation there. Israel’s N12 reported Trump updated Netanyahu on the deal’s progress on Sunday.
For Sri Lanka, the toll-free Hormuz reopening removes the single largest external pressure on the country’s fuel import bill. Ceylon Petroleum Corporation’s monthly crude bill spiked to US$886 million in April — up 149.9% year-on-year as Hormuz risk-premium charter and insurance costs piled on, and accounted for over a third of April’s $2.4 billion import basket. With markets immediately pricing in the announcement, Brent crude futures dropped sharply on Sunday evening, with Brent falling around 4% to $83.96, on signs that supply disruption fears have abated. Thousands of people have been killed, mostly in Iran and Lebanon, since the war began in February. Hardliners at pro-government rallies across Iran on Saturday night chanted “Death to the compromiser” in apparent reference to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, signalling continued internal opposition to the framework even as the official signing approaches.
Update — June 15: Iran confirms MoU finalised, Geneva signing Friday
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said early Monday that the memorandum of understanding between Iran and the United States has been finalised and would be officially signed on Friday, Anadolu Ajansi reported. The formal signing ceremony will take place in Geneva, Switzerland, according to remarks carried by Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agency, and the lifting of the US naval blockade against Iran will begin on Sunday night US time. Gharibabadi described the memorandum as the result not only of diplomacy but also of Iran’s “military achievements” during the conflict, claiming Iran had “included all of its key positions in the draft memorandum”. The full text will be published after the official signing, and Iranian officials will explain the agreement through public media before the ceremony.
Sources: US, Iran reach peace deal, signing set for Friday, Pakistan says — Ada Derana / Reuters, June 15; Trump Says Deal Between The US and Iran to be Signed, Today — NewsFirst, June 14; Trump Announces Iran Deal, Says Strait of Hormuz to Reopen — Newswire, June 15; Iran says MoU with US finalised, signing set for Friday — Ada Derana, June 15.
