Overview
- President Trump met with his national security team on Friday and postponed a "final determination" on a draft memorandum that could extend the ceasefire with Iran.
- Mediators and negotiators report modest progress toward a staged memorandum that would lift the U.S. naval blockade and reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for Iran allowing limited shipping and a 60-day sequencing period for further talks.
- U.S. officials say Iran’s stock of highly enriched uranium and rules for future enrichment remain the central unresolved technical hurdle to any final agreement.
- Iranian officials deny a final understanding has been reached, insist nuclear issues are not being negotiated now, and say Washington must abandon what Tehran calls excessive and contradictory demands before any deal.
- International agencies warn the disruption of Hormuz is straining global energy supplies and vulnerable economies, and U.S. forces remain on alert with officials saying military options could resume if diplomacy fails.