U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he believes Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has approved a deal with Washington that would lead to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of a U.S. blockade on Iranian ports, even as Tehran said the agreement was not yet final.
Asked by a reporter at the White House whether Khamenei had approved the deal, Trump said: “I understand the answer is yes.”
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US President Donald Trump and Mojtaba Khamenei
(Photo: AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Planet Labs PBC/Handout via REUTERS , Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS )
Trump described the emerging agreement as “a very strong memorandum of understanding,” adding that it was “a little conceptual, but it’s something that’s going to get done.”
The remarks came after Trump earlier said a U.S.-Iran deal could be signed in Europe this weekend and that Vice President JD Vance would attend the signing. That announcement followed Trump’s Truth Social post saying he had canceled scheduled U.S. strikes and bombings against Iran because discussions had been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved.
In that post, Trump said the discussions and final points had been approved in both concept and detail by all parties involved, naming the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt and others. He said at the time that the naval blockade would remain in force until the transaction was finalized.
Iran, however, pushed back on Trump’s timeline and said no final decision had been made.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran had not yet made a final decision on a possible agreement with the United States and would not compromise on its “red lines” in the negotiations, Iran’s IRNA news agency reported, according to Reuters.
Baghaei said reports about the time and place of a signing remained speculative and that nothing had been finalized. He added that a large part of the negotiating text had been completed, but said the United States had repeatedly changed its positions during the talks.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry also said Tehran would announce its position later, responding to Trump’s statement that the agreement between the countries could be signed in the coming days.
“We have previously stated that most of the clauses of the agreement have been settled, but the American side wanted to add new demands,” the ministry said. “The highest authorities will examine all clauses of any possible agreement, and we will announce our position later. What has been said about the time and place of the signing of the agreement is media speculation. The agreement with Washington is still not final.”
Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency also cited an informed source close to Iran’s negotiating team as saying Tehran had not approved any text for an initial memorandum of understanding with the United States, Reuters reported earlier.
Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency also cited an informed source close to Iran’s negotiating team as saying Tehran had not approved any text for an initial memorandum of understanding with the United States, Reuters reported earlier.
The Iranian statements appeared to complicate Trump’s announcement, suggesting that talks may be advancing but that Tehran has not formally approved a final written framework with Washington. It was not immediately clear whether the Iranian denial referred to the same document or understandings Trump described.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Thursday night that Netanyahu had spoken with Trump about the memorandum of understanding taking shape with Iran for entering negotiations.
The Prime Minister’s Office stressed that Israel is not a party to the memorandum of understanding, but said Netanyahu expressed appreciation for Trump’s commitment that any final agreement at the conclusion of negotiations would include the removal of enriched material, the dismantling of enrichment infrastructure, restrictions on missile production and the cessation of Iran’s support for its terrorist proxies in the region.
The Israeli statement appeared intended to underline Jerusalem’s red lines even as Washington moves toward an initial framework with Tehran. Israel has long insisted that any agreement with Iran must go beyond temporary limits and address enrichment, missile development and Tehran’s regional proxies.
Trump’s latest comments mark another shift after he had publicly threatened earlier to strike Iran very hard and raised the possibility of seizing Kharg Island, Iran’s key oil export hub in the Persian Gulf.
Kharg Island has been viewed by U.S. officials as one of the most sensitive possible targets in the conflict because of its importance to Iran’s oil exports. Earlier, Pentagon officials and senior U.S. administration officials were said to have warned that seizing Kharg or destroying its energy infrastructure would be highly risky and could require significant ground forces.
The operation had been viewed as a possible endgame measure that could severely damage Iran’s economy and war capabilities, but also carry the risk of heavy casualties and wider regional escalation. U.S. forces have previously carried out airstrikes on military facilities on Kharg while avoiding damage to the island’s critical energy infrastructure.
Trump’s remarks suggest that Washington may be stepping back, at least for now, from immediate military escalation. But the combination of his blockade threat, Iran’s insistence that no final deal has been reached and Israel’s demands on enrichment and missiles indicates that the negotiations remain fragile.
The apparent diplomatic turn comes as regional dynamics continue to shift. Bloomberg reported earlier that senior security officials from the UAE and Iran had met for the first time since the war began, in what sources familiar with the discussions described as a sharp turn for both sides.
The UAE, one of Washington’s and Israel’s closest regional allies, has suffered repeated Iranian missile and drone attacks during the war, with damage to oil and gas facilities, ports and hotels. But Abu Dhabi has also sought to reduce further damage to its economy and security while recognizing that the Iranian regime is likely to remain in power.
For Tehran, maintaining ties with the UAE is also important. Before the war, the UAE was one of Iran’s largest trading partners and a key route for oil exports. The ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz, fragile ceasefires and slow progress in U.S.-Iran talks have pushed several Gulf states toward efforts to contain the confrontation through diplomacy.
If a signing takes place this weekend, it could represent the most significant diplomatic development since the conflict began. But Iran’s latest response signals that major gaps or disputes over wording may remain, and Israel’s statement makes clear that Jerusalem expects any final agreement to include concrete steps against Iran’s nuclear, missile and regional proxy capabilities.
First published: 22:55, 06.11.26