US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to end a war that has devastated the Middle East since late February.
The White House has confirmed the digital signing, noting that an initial phase of the agreement was signed on Sunday by US Vice President JD Vance and Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, with President Trump witnessing.
Trump had previously announced that both sides had agreed on the deal on 14 June.
Trump told reporters that he had signed the memorandum at the Palace of Versailles, near Paris, where he was attending the G7 Summit ahead of a dinner hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Macron shared a video on social media showing the moment Trump signed the document, in which Trump said: "This was not easy."
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Both sides have 60 days, extendable by mutual consent, to negotiate a final comprehensive treaty.
Trump was blunt about the consequences of a breakdown in talks. "If it doesn't get done in 60 days, that's all right. We go back to bombing," he said. "I don't want to do that, because it's so good, but we might have to, because we're never going to let them have a nuclear weapon."
Because the document was signed digitally, there will be no physical ceremony. Negotiating teams from both sides are still expected to gather in Geneva on Friday, though Baghaei said a formal bilateral meeting had not yet been confirmed.
14-point framework
The agreement, titled the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, brings a formal framework to end a conflict that began on 28 February, when the US and Israel launched unprovoked, coordinated air strikes against Iran.
The strikes, widely denounced as illegal , killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and several senior officials, triggering Iranian retaliatory strikes against Israel, US military bases across the region, and Gulf Arab states.
Iran also moved to block the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20 percent of global oil and liquefied natural gas passes, triggering a global fuel crisis. A fragile ceasefire has been in effect since 8 April.
'If it doesn't get done in 60 days, that's all right. We go back to bombing'
- Donald Trump
The 14-point document sets out provisions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, easing financial restrictions on Iran, and addressing Iran's nuclear programme in future technical talks.
Under the terms of the MoU, both sides declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon , and committed not to initiate further military operations against each other.
The US undertook to begin removing its naval blockade immediately upon signing, and to fully lift it within 30 days. Iran, in turn, committed to making arrangements for the safe passage of commercial vessels through the Persian Gulf to the Sea of Oman for an initial 60-day period.
The MoU states that Iran has committed not to build a nuclear weapon, a commitment Tehran has maintained for 50 years, and that both sides agreed to further discuss the fate of Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
Iran holds an estimated 440 kg of uranium enriched to 60 percent, which could be converted to weapons-grade material with limited additional processing. Under the agreement, Iran will down-blend its existing stockpiles on-site under IAEA supervision, with the parameters of its broader nuclear programme to be negotiated during the 60-day window.
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Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said after the signing that Tehran would monitor US compliance "without any leniency" and would not fulfil its own commitments if Washington "evades its obligations".
He also confirmed that Iran's missile programme would not be on the table during the follow-on talks. "Iran's missiles are only for firing, not for negotiation," he said.
Baghaei added that Iran would not transfer its stockpile of highly enriched uranium abroad, describing on-site dilution as "an option introduced to close the door on other possibilities".
The US will also work with regional partners to develop a $300bn reconstruction fund for Iran, the details of which are to be settled during the 60-day negotiating period.
Administration officials said the agreement did not require the US "to pay a cent" to Iran, but would permit sanctions relief that would allow, for example, Gulf states to invest in Iranian infrastructure.
The deal also eases certain financial restrictions, with the US Treasury set to issue oil export waivers immediately, and frozen Iranian assets to be released on terms to be mutually agreed.
Shift on Iran's nuclear programme
Trump's remarks at the G7 summit in France also re…
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