US and Iran near one-page memorandum to end war and open 30-day nuclear talks
US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are close to a one-page, 14-point memorandum of understanding with Iran that would end the war and open a 30-day window for detailed talks on Iran's nuclear programme, sanctions relief and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, US officials and Pakistani mediators said. The uranium enrichment moratorium under negotiation runs 12 to 15 years — between Iran's offer of five and Washington's demand of twenty — alongside US release of billions in frozen Iranian funds. Secretary of State Marco Rubio cautioned the deal need not be written in a day, called some Iranian leaders "insane in the brain" and said it was unclear whether they would close it.
The White House believes it is close to a one-page, 14-point memorandum of understanding with Iran that would declare an end to the regional war and open a 30-day window for detailed negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme, US sanctions and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, two US officials and two other sources briefed on the matter told Axios. Pakistan's foreign minister, mediating between the sides, told Reuters the parties were "very close" to a deal and that the ceasefire should lead to a "permanent end of war." US officials expect Iranian responses on several key points within 24 to 48 hours; CNBC, citing an Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson, reported Tehran was reviewing the 14-point US plan.
The MOU is being negotiated between Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and Iranian officials, both directly and through mediators. Once signed, it would trigger a 30-day period of follow-on talks — held in Islamabad or Geneva, two sources said — to convert the framework into a detailed agreement. During that window, Iran's blockade of Hormuz shipping and the US naval blockade of Iranian ports would be lifted in stages. If the talks collapse, US forces would be free to restore the blockade or resume military operations, a US official said.
The duration of the moratorium on uranium enrichment is being actively negotiated, with three sources putting it at no less than 12 years and one source citing 15 as the likely landing point; Iran initially proposed five years and the US demanded 20. After expiry, Iran would be allowed to enrich uranium to a low 3.67 percent. Washington wants a clause whereby any Iranian violation extends the moratorium. Iran would commit in the MOU never to seek a nuclear weapon or conduct weaponization-related activities, and the parties are discussing a clause barring Tehran from operating underground nuclear facilities. The agreement would also impose an enhanced inspections regime, including snap inspections by UN inspectors. According to two sources, Iran would also agree to remove its stockpile of highly enriched uranium from the country — a longstanding US priority Tehran has rejected until now; one source said an option under discussion is moving the material to the United States.
In return, the US would commit to a gradual lifting of sanctions on Iran and the gradual release of billions of dollars in Iranian funds frozen around the world. Many of the memo's provisions are explicitly contingent on reaching a final detailed agreement at the end of the 30-day window, leaving open the possibility of renewed war or, as Axios put it, "an extended limbo in which the hot war has stopped but nothing is truly resolved."
The two US officials said President Trump's decision to suspend the newly-announced "Project Freedom" escort mission in Hormuz, and to avoid a collapse of the fragile ceasefire, was based on progress in these talks. Trump posted on Truth Social that he was pausing the operation "for a short time" to see whether the deal could be finalised, citing "great progress." White House officials nonetheless caution that the Iranian leadership appears divided and that consensus across factions may be hard to forge; some US officials remain skeptical that even an initial deal will close, having expressed similar optimism in earlier rounds without result.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that "we don't have to have the actual agreement written in one day. This is highly complex and technical. But we have to have a diplomatic solution that is very clear on the topics they are willing to negotiate on and the extent of the concessions they are willing to make at the front end in order to make it worthwhile." Rubio also called some of Iran's top leaders "insane in the brain" and said it was unclear whether they would make a deal.
On the Iranian side, the Revolutionary Guard navy said in state media that safe transit through Hormuz would be guaranteed once "the threats from the US end" and new procedures took effect. Iran has separately stood up a permit regime via a newly-named Persian Gulf Strait Authority, requiring shippers to request clearance by email and follow Iranian rules. Pakistan's foreign minister framed Islamabad's mediation as aimed at a permanent halt rather than a renewable pause.
The war began on 28 February 2026, when the United States and Israel attacked Iran. Iran retaliated with strikes on Israel and on US bases across the region. Earlier rounds of US-Iran negotiations failed, with Iran's nuclear programme the central sticking point — the US demanded a freeze on all nuclear activity and Tehran refused. Throughout the conflict, traffic through Hormuz has been at a near-standstill: Iran has closed the strait to commercial shipping and the US Navy has stopped all vessels heading to or leaving Iranian ports.