President Donald Trump says he is heading to the White House Situation Room to make a “final determination” — apparently on the memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire with Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
White House officials stated yesterday that US and Iran negotiators had struck a memorandum of understanding (MoU), but Trump has yet to give his final approval.
Iran has denied granting the final approval, and Israel thinks Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has not signed off on the MoU.
“Iran must agree that they will never have a nuclear weapon or bomb. The Hormuz Strait must be immediately open, no tolls, for unrestricted shipping traffic, in both directions,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
The president referenced reported terms of the MoU, which the White House confirmed yesterday.
“All water mines (bombs), if any, will be terminated (we have removed, through detonation, numerous such mines with our great underwater mine sweepers. Iran will complete the immediate removal and/or detonation of any mines that are left, which will not be many!)” Trump continued.
“Ships caught in the Strait due to our amazing and unprecedented naval blockade, which will now be lifted, may start the process of ‘heading home!’” Trump added.
Trump suggested that he has already made a decision to lift the blockade, even though that was only supposed to happen once the MoU was signed, according to the terms leaked to the press and confirmed by the White House.
It wasn’t clear if Iran had since demanded that the blockade be lifted in advance in order to move forward.
The MoU stipulates that the sides will hold subsequent negotiations during the 60-day ceasefire extension on Iran’s nuclear program, including its stockpiles of highly enriched uranium.
Trump insisted that this “nuclear dust” will be “unearthed” and destroyed by the US in close coordination with Iran and the UN’s nuclear energy agency.
