The White House sought to make the case that its interim deal with Iran will end a global energy crisis and achieve the administration’s wartime goals, even as the two adversaries diverged on what the agreement will look like.
World leaders welcomed the agreement and markets responded positively. But the US and Iran have yet to release a text of the memorandum of understanding, and doubts remained on when it will go into effect – or how exactly it will lead to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
President Donald Trump, speaking to reporters at the Group of Seven summit in France, insisted that the strait would be clear for traffic. “We have a lot of lanes right now already,” he said sitting alongside French President Emmanuel Macron.
Vice President JD Vance also sought to defend the deal Monday, making the rounds on television, claiming that any pact with Iran would be built around a verification system to ensure Tehran followed through on the terms. The two sides are expected to hold a formal signing ceremony on June 19.
And senior administration officials, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity, described a hoped-for outcome that echoed sentiments expressed by administrations dating back to President Barack Obama – that the US wanted to extend a hand to Iran, and if it met a series of demands it would get relief from economic sanctions and win other financial incentives.
Talking points distributed to surrogates and allies showed the extent to which the White House is pushing messaging that Trump won’t hesitate to return to strikes if Iran isn’t meeting US demands.
“President Trump knows this regime stalls and uses talks to buy time. He will not allow it,” according to a document seen by Bloomberg. “The pressure that brought Iran to the table stays fully loaded, and every option is still on the table.”
Those lines undoubtedly are partly meant to placate hawks who are pressuring Trump to keep open to returning to strikes. The document also shows that US officials and allies are meant to be underscoring that there is “no open-ended timeline” for Iran to adhere to the MOU’s terms, as the two sides look to settle a war that started with the administration’s four- to six-week estimated timeline in late February.
Trump’s frustration with the war he launched nearly four months ago has been increasingly visible and the president looked fatigued at the G7, arriving at the gathering in the French Alps on a flight that departed Washington around 3 a.m. local time after attending a UFC event on his birthday at the White House.
Stocks climbed around the world, joining gains in bonds as oil slumped following the announcement that the US and Iran had agreed to reopen Hormuz. Still, despite the administration’s efforts to sell the deal, both the US and Iran offered different perspectives on the potential for tolls on traffic through the strait – highlighting the lack of clarity clouding the deal.
“It’s going to be open and it’s toll-free,” Trump said. Iran’s Fars news agency has reported, however, that any interim deal specifies Tehran will allow free transit for only 60 days, with plans to charge after that period.
Whether the waterway is safe for traffic will be a determination ultimately made by shippers. Trump’s claims have been dismissed by the industry in the past, with vessels wary of making the journey without more clarity.
The ongoing fighting in Lebanon, where Israel is targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah militants to prevent them from launching attacks on their own territory, also poses a major test for whether the deal will survive.
One of the senior US officials briefing reporters earlier Monday said Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon wasn’t a condition of the deal and that the country has the right to respond to any attacks by Hezbollah.
Trump played down the issue in comments to reporters, suggesting it could be resolved with more talks.
“We do want to see if we can straighten out the Lebanon thing,” he said. “Hezbollah, we have to have a little talk with them.”
While Trump, Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf have signed the interim deal virtually, a signing ceremony is slated for Friday. Trump said Monday that the text of the agreement could be released “sometime after Friday.”
