Officials say Iran and US close to an agreement

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) — The United States and Iran are close to agreeing on a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war, two regional officials and a diplomat said Saturday, as the United States has weighed a new round of attacks on the Islamic Republic.

Iran signaled “narrowing differences” in negotiations with the U.S. after Pakistan’s army chief held more talks in Tehran, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told journalists in India that “there’s been some progress made” and “there may be news later today.”

The officials and diplomat expressed hope that a final decision on the Pakistan-prepared draft could come within 48 hours as both sides review it. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

They said Vice President JD Vance and envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner played significant roles in helping bridge remaining gaps, and that Qatar played a key role by sending a senior official to Tehran to support Pakistan’s mediation efforts.

Still, both Iran and the U.S. emphasized their key positions and have warned of the risks of resuming attacks and disrupting their ceasefire. Rubio repeated the U.S. stance that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon and must turn over its highly enriched uranium, and the Strait of Hormuz must be open.

Iran describes it as a ‘framework agreement’ for more talks

Iran state TV quoted Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei as describing the draft as a “framework agreement” and adding: “We want this to include the main issues required for ending the imposed war and other issues of essential importance to us. Then, over a reasonable time span, between 30 to 60 days, details are discussed and ultimately a final agreement is reached.”

He said the Strait of Hormuz is among the topics discussed.

Positions have moved closer in recent days, Iran’s official IRNA news agency quoted Baghaei as saying.

“Over the past week, the trend has been toward narrowing differences,” he said. “We will have to wait and see what happens over the next three or four days.”

Baghaei said nuclear issues are not part of the current negotiations, as Tehran first seeks to end the war before discussing its nuclear program that has long been at the heart of international tensions.

“Our focus at this stage is on ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon,” Baghaei said, adding that lifting sanctions on Tehran “has explicitly been included in the text and remains our fixed position.”

The Iranian-backed Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV reported that leader Naim Kassim received a letter from Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying Tehran will not abandon its allies. There is a fragile, U.S.-brokered ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon that began two days after the Iran war started.

Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, the lead negotiator in historic face-to-face talks with the U.S. last month, said Iran has rebuilt its military assets and if U.S. President Donald Trump resumes attacks, the result would be “more crushing and more bitter” than at the start of the war. He spoke after meeting with Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir, state TV reported.

Trump had said ‘serious negotiations’ were underway

Trump earlier said he was holding off on a military strike against Iran because “serious negotiations” were underway, and at the request of allies in the Middle East. Trump has repeatedly set deadlines for Tehran and then backed off.

The U.S. and Israel sparked the war with attacks on Feb. 28, cutting short nuclear talks with Iran. Tehran retaliated by effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for the region’s oil, natural gas and fertilizer, causing global economic pain.

The U.S. then blockaded Iranian ports. The U.S. Central Command on Saturday said U.S. forces had turned away more than 100 commercial vessels and disabled four since the blockade began April 13.

On his visit to Tehran, Pakistan’s army chief also met with Araghchi, President Masoud Pezeshkian and other senior officials, the two officials said, adding that Islamabad continues efforts to arrange a second round of direct negotiations.

It was not clear whether Munir met with Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, who heads Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, has become a major player in formulating Iran’s tough stance in talks.

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Lee reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed.