U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that a deal to end the war against Iran could be signed soon, after calling off scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran on Thursday evening.
Trump said the United States had "just made a great settlement of the war with Iran", with an agreement expected to be signed "over the next few days".
He told reporters at the White House that he expected a signing ceremony, attended by Vice President JD Vance, to be held in Europe over the weekend. Trump said the documents were in "final shape" and that the deal would be completed "pretty quickly".
Trump also said Iran will not possess nuclear weapons, and that once an agreement is signed, the Strait of Hormuz will be opened immediately. He also said that an operation targeting Iran's Kharg Island is no longer under consideration.
Earlier on Thursday, Trump vowed to launch new strikes against Iran for a third consecutive day and threatened the possible takeover of the Kharg Island and other Iranian oil infrastructure, but announced hours later that he had canceled the scheduled attacks.
"Based on the fact that discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved, I have, as President of the United States of America, canceled the scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran this evening," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"Discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail, approved by all parties involved, including the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, and others," Trump said in the post.
However, Trump noted that the U.S. naval blockade will "remain in full force and effect" until a transaction is finalized, adding that time and place of the signing will be announced shortly.
Iran has not yet confirmed whether it has agreed to terms with the United States on a settlement to end the war that the U.S. and Israel launched against Iran on Feb. 28.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump discussed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) being formed with Iran to enter negotiations during a phone call on Thursday evening, read a statement by Netanyahu's office.
According to the statement, while Israel is not a party to the MoU, Netanyahu thanked Trump for his commitment that the final agreement at the end of the negotiations would include removing Iran's enriched material, dismantling its enrichment facilities, limiting its missile production, and ending its support for its regional "terrorist proxies".
The same day, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said that Iran has not yet reached a final position or a conclusive decision on the agreement, adding that what is being circulated about the deal remains speculative.
Baghaei noted that Qatar and Pakistan are playing an active mediating role. He said that a substantial portion of the final draft had already been finalized, but the U.S. side continued to shift its positions throughout the negotiations.
The spokesman said Iran has demonstrated that it will not make any concessions on what it considers "red lines".
He added the Strait of Hormuz remains closed at present due to the "illegal acts" committed by the United States.
In a statement released on Thursday, Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics emphasized that the Iranian armed forces possess greater readiness, capability, and defensive power than ever before, warning that any miscalculation or aggression against the country's security and territorial integrity will be met with a decisive, regrettable response "far beyond the enemy's flawed imagination".
The Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Iran's main military command, on Thursday accused the United States of being the root cause of the unrest in the Middle East due to the obvious contradiction between its words and deeds.
The Iranian military warned that the U.S. will face a harsher response than ever before if it launches another round of strikes on Iran.
Trump signals approaching deal with Iran after calling off scheduled strikes
