President Donald Trump said Sunday that the United States will not “rush” into a nuclear agreement with Iran, stressing that negotiations remain ongoing and that both sides must take the time to “get it right” as talks continue over the future of the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran’s uranium program.
“Our relationship with Iran is becoming a much more professional and productive one,” Trump wrote in a social media post. “They must understand, however, that they cannot develop or procure a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb.”
Trump also confirmed that the U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will remain in place until a final agreement is completed and certified.
Senior Trump administration officials later told reporters that no agreement would be signed Sunday, cautioning that negotiators are still working through sensitive language on several key provisions, including the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
“There is still back and forth over certain parts of the deal — some words that are important to us and some words that are important to them,” one senior official said, adding that Iran’s approval process remains slow and could take several more days.
The official added that Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had reportedly approved the “broad template” of the agreement, though whether that translates into a finalized deal “is still an open question.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier hinted that there could be “some good news” regarding the Strait of Hormuz in the coming hours as negotiations continued behind closed doors.
According to U.S. officials, Washington plans to lift the Hormuz blockade as part of a broader agreement, while Iran has agreed in principle to dispose of its highly enriched uranium stockpile. However, officials emphasized that no Iranian assets would be unfrozen under the current framework and reiterated that any Iranian attempt to impose a toll system on Hormuz shipping would be “unacceptable.”
Iranian officials and state-linked media offered a more cautious assessment. The semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that Tehran and Washington remain divided over “one or two provisions,” while Fars News dismissed Trump’s optimistic characterization of the talks as “far from reality.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran remains willing to assure the international community that it is not pursuing nuclear weapons.
“We are ready to assure the world during any talks that we are not seeking nuclear weapons,” Pezeshkian said Sunday, according to Iranian media.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he spoke with Trump about the ongoing Iran negotiations and reiterated that any final agreement must fully eliminate the threat of an Iranian nuclear weapon. According to sources familiar with the discussions, talks between Trump and Netanyahu on the issue have at times been tense, with the Israeli leader reportedly pushing for a tougher approach toward Tehran while parts of the Trump administration continue pursuing a negotiated settlement and an extension of the fragile ceasefire.
The reported framework has already sparked criticism from several Republicans, who compared it to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal negotiated under former President Barack Obama.
Trump rejected those comparisons Sunday.
“It was a direct path to Iran developing a Nuclear Weapon,” Trump wrote of the Obama-era agreement. “Not so with the transaction currently being negotiated with Iran by the Trump Administration — THE EXACT OPPOSITE, in fact!”
By Tom Kool for Oilprice.com
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