US and Iran Reach Preliminary Agreement to End War

Washington DC. US and Iranian officials have reached a preliminary agreement to end the ongoing war between the two countries. 

Under this agreement reached on Sunday, the US will lift sanctions imposed on Iran and the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened. With this preliminary agreement, crude oil prices have fallen sharply in the world market, but the future of Iran's nuclear program will only be decided by future negotiations. 

US President Donald Trump wrote on his social media platform 'Truth Social' at 5:30 PM local time in Washington on Sunday, 'The deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete.' Before Trump's statement, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who played a mediating role in this negotiation, had announced the agreement early Monday morning. The formal signing of this memorandum of understanding is scheduled for Friday in Switzerland. 

The detailed terms of the agreement have not been immediately disclosed. However, according to Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif's post on social media X, this agreement calls for an immediate and permanent cessation of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon. Lebanon had become a complex point of negotiation in recent weeks due to Israel and Hezbollah continuing their attacks on each other, ignoring the pleas of Trump and others. 

Meanwhile, the secretariat of Iran's Supreme National Security Council issued a statement stating that the war and military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon, will permanently end from Monday night. However, Israel, which has maintained that it is not involved in the US-Iran negotiations, has not yet responded to this announcement. 

Trump has stated that the Strait of Hormuz, a major maritime route for global oil and gas supply that Iran had blocked for months, will open on Friday. He also informed that he has ordered the lifting of US sanctions on Iranian ports. 

Trump wrote, 'Start your engines, ships of the world. Let the oil flow!' Oil prices have fallen with this news. Brent crude futures fell 4% in early trading on Monday, while US West Texas Intermediate fell more than 4.6%. Meanwhile, Asian stock markets have surged. 

Matthew Miller, a former State Department spokesperson for the Biden administration, criticized Trump, saying he gave significant concessions to Iran to return to the pre-war situation. He said, 'We have no guarantee that the nuclear program will be addressed, but Iran has shown the world that it can get something from the US by holding the world economy hostage.' 

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said that further detailed agreements, including the lifting of sanctions on Iran during the 60-day ceasefire, will be negotiated. According to Reuters, the complex issue of Iran's nuclear program will also be raised in these upcoming negotiations. 

Thousands of people have been killed in Iran and Lebanon since the first attack by US and Israeli forces on Iran on February 28. Iran had also attacked Israel and Gulf countries with US bases, and increased global energy prices by closing the Strait of Hormuz. 

In response, the US military had closed Iranian ports. The rising gas prices ahead of the midterm elections in November were making this Iran war politically damaging for Trump and his Republican colleagues in Congress. However, Trump is facing pressure from members of his own party to completely halt Iran's nuclear program. 

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, while praising the agreement, said he would 'closely monitor' future negotiations regarding Iran's nuclear program. He said, 'Under our law, any nuclear agreement with Iran will be sent to Congress for review and vote. Congratulations to everyone who brought us to this point.' 

In his first term, Trump withdrew the US from the multilateral Iran deal reached by Democratic President Barack Obama in 2015. Under that agreement, sanctions on Tehran were lifted in exchange for limiting its nuclear program, including international inspections. In response, Iran increased its uranium enrichment and produced about 400 kg of fissile material suitable for bomb-making. The management of this uranium is likely to be the main agenda in future negotiations. 

This agreement was reached despite an Israeli attack in Lebanon on Sunday. Both Iran and Trump had criticized the Israeli attack. 

There has been a disagreement between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump regarding the US demand to stop military operations in Lebanon to facilitate the Iran-US agreement. Israel has stated that it will continue its operations in Lebanon, while Iran has made a complete ceasefire there a primary condition. 

According to a report by Israeli media N12, Trump informed Netanyahu about the progress of the peace agreement in a phone call on Sunday. In an interview with The New York Times, Trump called Netanyahu 'a very difficult man' and argued that the Israeli leader should thank him for saving Israel from a nuclear-armed Iran. 

Before the announcement of the agreement, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that the draft includes an agreement to release Iran's $25 billion, which the US had frozen. A US official said that this agreement will ultimately dismantle Iran's nuclear program and destroy highly enriched uranium. However, the Iranian official said that Iran will be allowed to reduce the enrichment of its enriched uranium within its own country.