Evian/Tehran;
Trump signed the agreement during a dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Palace of Versailles on the sidelines of the G7 Summit. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio presented the document to him before the signing. “This was not easy,” Trump said before signing the pact. The US later sent a photograph of the signed document to Iran, after which Pezeshkian signed it.
The agreement, officially titled the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran, lays out a framework for a regional ceasefire, sanctions relief, economic cooperation and further talks on Iran’s nuclear programme.
Pezeshkian described the MoU as a “historic document” and a “message from a strong Iran”. In a post on X, he said peace would be achieved through mutual respect and added that Iran remained committed to global peace while preserving its dignity and independence.
The memorandum calls for an immediate end to hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon, the reopening of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of the US blockade of Iranian ports, the waiving of US sanctions, the unfreezing of Iranian assets and a $300 billion reconstruction fund for Iran.
Iran has also agreed not to build nuclear weapons and to allow the on-site down-blending of its enriched uranium stockpile under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency. However, Tehran has rejected Washington’s earlier demand that the stockpile be removed from the country.
Despite the breakthrough, Trump warned that the US could resume military action if Iran violated the agreement. “We’re going to bomb the hell out of them if they violate the agreement,” he said at the G7 Summit, while adding that he wanted Tehran to honour the pact.
Trump also appeared to soften his earlier position on Iran’s missile programme, saying it would be “a little bit unfair” for Iran not to have ballistic missiles if other countries possessed them.
The agreement follows months of hostilities involving Iran, Israel and the United States, which have killed more than 7,000 people, mostly in Iran and Lebanon, pushed up energy prices and raised fears of wider regional instability.
Macron welcomed the signing, saying it paved the way for lasting peace and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. G7 leaders also backed the agreement and called for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon, where fighting between Israel and Hezbollah has eased but not ended.
Trump also urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to take “a little softer touch” in Lebanon, even as fresh Israeli strikes and Hezbollah drone attacks were reported in the south.
