A Pakistani security official told Reuters on Saturday that the final touches are being put on a memorandum of understanding to end the war between the United States and Iran, at a time when US President Donald Trump is preparing for a meeting with his negotiators to discuss the latest Iranian offer.
Trump said, in an interview with Axios, that he will decide by Sunday whether he will move towards an agreement with Iran or resume the war against it, considering that the chances of reaching a “good agreement” or returning to striking Iran militarily seem “almost equal.”
Trump added: “Either we make a good deal, or we hit them with unprecedented force.”
The Pakistani army commander, Field Marshal Asim Munir, left Tehran on Saturday, after meetings with Iranian officials as part of a mediation aimed at pushing the two parties towards an agreement.
Pakistan announced that a final agreement had not yet been reached, but spoke of “encouraging progress towards a final understanding.”
According to the report, the new draft that Trump intends to review emerged from the Iranian-Pakistani talks.
For its part, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Tehran and Washington have entered the final stage of discussing a memorandum of understanding to end the war.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman added that the memorandum will also address the gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of the US blockade, and the release of frozen Iranian funds, to be followed by a negotiation period extending between 30 and 60 days to reach a detailed agreement.
Trump stressed that he would only accept an agreement that includes basic issues such as uranium enrichment and the fate of the existing Iranian stockpile.
However, according to Axios, these files may not be resolved in detail within the currently proposed memorandum of understanding, which aims primarily to end the war and open the door to deeper negotiations.
On the other hand, Israeli officials say that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is showing great concern about the agreement under discussion, and is pushing for a new round of strikes.
Until now, the positions of Washington and Tehran are still far apart on the nuclear file and the Strait of Hormuz, issues that may not be completely resolved even if an initial peace memorandum is signed.