ADRIAN FLORIDO, HOST:
In a social media post today, President Trump said that the U.S. and Iran have largely negotiated an agreement towards ending the war. This comes as the possibility of further U.S. strikes on Iran have loomed, and many questions remain about the possible deal and the fate of the conflict. We're joined by NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre. Hi, Greg.
GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Hi, Adrian.
FLORIDO: Can you tell us more, Greg, about what is in Trump's statement?
MYRE: Yeah, he took to Truth Social recently, and he said he was in the Oval Office. He said he had a very good call with multiple Middle East leaders. These include the Gulf countries, several other countries in the region. He said he had a conversation as well with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu, all related to a memorandum of understanding pertaining to peace in the Iran war. He says, an agreement has been, quote, "largely negotiated, subject to finalization between the United States of America and Iran and other countries."
Now, he went on to say, final aspects and details of the deal are currently being discussed. So it's clear that it's not nailed down. It has not been approved by everybody, and we don't know a lot of the things that would be in it. He did say that the Strait of Hormuz will be opened, but there is no mention of Iran's nuclear program. And obviously, that has been one of the key elements that President Trump has been demanding.
FLORIDO: Any kind of deal on ending the war would be a huge development. What are we hearing from Iran, though?
MYRE: Yeah, so we did hear a little earlier in the day from Iran, from a spokesman in the foreign ministry, and he also gave a somewhat similar assessment, saying the U.S. and Iran were in the final stage, again, of what he called a memorandum of understanding. And he said, quote, "the position of the two sides are becoming closer."
So again, I want to stress, it sounds like there's progress. They're close, but they haven't nailed it down. And this sounds more like a framework, something to keep the ceasefire in place, perhaps open the Strait of Hormuz, ease the tensions without nailing down all of the other issues, again, including things like Iran's nuclear program.
FLORIDO: And so is it really clear, Greg, whether this deal - potential deal would be an extension of the ceasefire or an actual all-out end to the war?
MYRE: Yeah, Adrian, it's really not clear at this preliminary stage when, in fact, the deal hasn't even been fully agreed to or signed.
FLORIDO: Sure.
MYRE: But it sounds like we're definitely talking about an extension of the ceasefire. A key factor would be opening the Strait of Hormuz. Again, we - that nuclear deal - nuclear program still seems to be on the table. So it doesn't sound like we've worked out any of the final issues. And we know President Trump has wanted a nuclear deal to be part of any agreement ending the war, while Iran has been talking ending the war first and then leaving nuclear negotiations for later.
FLORIDO: Aside from the nuclear negotiations, what other issues would have to be addressed, Greg?
MYRE: Yeah, Iran has raised a number of things. They say they want sanctions relief, the sanctions that the U.S. and other Western countries have imposed on the country for a long time. They want reparations for the war, all the damage that has been inflicted by the U.S. and Israeli bombing attacks. And they've also said they want to talk about not just opening the Strait of Hormuz...
FLORIDO: OK.
MYRE: ...But making future arrangements about how it would be dealt with in the future.
FLORIDO: That's NPR's Greg Myre. Thanks for joining us.
MYRE: Sure thing, Adrian. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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