• Trump believes deal with Iran ‘very possible’; operation to escort ships through Strait of Hormuz paused, ‘Epic Fury’ concluded
• Iran says US proposal under review, will relay response via Pakistan; spokesperson insists talks require ‘genuine attempt to engage in discussions’
• Reports claim Tehran, Washington close to agreeing on ‘one-page’ memorandum of understanding

WASHINGTON / TEHRAN: The US and Iran on Wednesday see­med to inch towards a peace deal after weeks of hostilities in the Middle East amid reports of a possible deal as Tehran reviewed a fresh proposal from Washington following the suspension of ‘Project Freedom’ launc­hed by the US to open the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump said he has had “very good talks” with Iran over the past 24 hours as Tehran reviews a US proposal to end the war.

“It’s very possible that we’ll make a deal,” Trump told reporters at the Oval Office, according to Al Jazeera.

Meanwhile, Trump said the Hormuz operation was paused for short time due to “great progress” towards a comprehensive agreement with Iran, warning that a failure to reach a peace deal by Iran would result in an intense bombing campaign.

“We have mutually agreed that, while the blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom … will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the agreement can be finalised and signed,” President Trump wrote on social media. He, however, said Iran wanted to negotiate. “We are dealing with people that want to make a deal very much, and we’ll see whether or not they can make a deal that’s satisfactory to us,” he said at an event at the White House. The US president said that the suspension of ‘Project Freedom’ came at the request of Pakistan and other countries.

Tehran appeared receptive to the fresh proposal, saying that it was reviewing the agreement and a response would be relayed to Washington via Islamabad.

“Messages are being exchanged through the Pakistani mediator, and reviews regarding the exchanged texts are ongoing,” Iran’s IRIB broadcaster quoted Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei as saying.

These developments came after United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that Operation Epic Fury had concluded because the objectives had been achieved. Washington now prefers “the path of peace”, he had said.

In its report, US news outlet Axios claimed that Washington and Tehran were close to agreeing on a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and “set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations”.

The report, citing US officials and sources, said the US expected Iran’s response on several key matters in the next 48 hours. It further stated that the deal “would involve Iran committing to a moratorium on nuclear enrichment, the US agreeing to lift its sanctions and release billions in frozen Iranian funds, and both sides lifting restrictions around transit through the Strait of Hormuz”. “Many of the terms laid out in the memo would be contingent on a final agreement being reached, leaving the possibility of renewed war or an extended limbo in which the hot war has stopped but nothing is truly resolved,” the report said.

However, the direct talks, according to the US president, were not imminent amid reports that an agreement would be reached “very soon”. He told a reporter that it would be “too soon” to consider face-to-face talks with Iran in Islamabad, after he was asked whether the New York Post should send its reporter to Islamabad to cover the potential talks. “I don’t think so. I think we’ll do it — it’s too far,” he added. “No, it’s too much.” About the potential deal, Reuters had quoted Pakistani sources saying “we will close this very soon”.

In response to his social media post wherein the US president warned of bombing “at a much higher level and intensity than it was before”, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said talks required “a genuine attempt to engage in discussions with a view to resolving the dispute”.

“It needs ‘good faith’, then, meaning that ‘negotiations’ is not ‘disputation’; nor is it ‘dictation’, ‘deception’, ‘extortion’ or ‘coercion’,” he added in a post on X.

Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf also accused the US of trying to use economic and media pressure to create divisions within Iran and push it to “surrender”, a tactic he said would fail, Al Jazeera reported. “The enemy is very hopeful about economic pressure, and it is clear that they have once again received false reports, and based on these reports, they have made wrong decisions,” Mr Ghalibaf said in comments carried by Iran’s Fars news agency. “This wrong decision will cause everyone to suffer.”

Likewise, Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesperson for Iran’s National Security Committee, dismissed the Axios report about the potential agreement as “a wishlist of the Americans rather than a reality”.

As Hormuz remained choked, the US and Gulf planned to table a resolution in the UN against Iran.

Marco Rubio said the US had made some adjustments to a draft UN resolution on the Strait of Hormuz to try and avoid vetoes by China and Russia, reported Reuters. The resolution, also drafted by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Qatar, would require Iran “to cease attacks, mining, and tolling” and demands that Iran disclose the number and location of the sea mines it has laid and cooperate with efforts to remove them.

Iran’s permanent mission to the UN, however, urged member states to reject a resolution drafted by the US and its Gulf allies, calling it “flawed” and “politically motivated”.

“The only viable solution in the Strait of Hormuz is clear: a permanent end to the war, the lifting of the maritime blockade, and the restoration of normal passage,” said Iran’s UN mission in a post on X.

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron has conveyed his concerns to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian about Iranian strikes on the United Arab Emirates earlier this week.

“All parties must lift the blockade of the Strait, without delay and without conditions,” he has said in a post on X. “We must durably return to the regime of full freedom of navigation that prevailed before the conflict.”

UAE leader speaks with Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a rare phone call with the leader of the United Arab Emirates this week, a conversation that highlights strengthening ties between the two nations following Iran’s retaliation against US-Israeli attacks, Bloomberg reported.

Netanyahu called UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed to express solidarity after Iran launched attacks against the UAE on Monday. According to the state-run WAM news agency, Netanyahu offered Israel’s “support for all measures it takes to safeguard its security”.

The Israeli prime minister said he also planned to speak with President Trump, adding that both leaders agree all enriched uranium must be removed from Iran. “There is full coordination between us, there are no surprises. We share common goals, and the most important goal is the removal of enriched material from Iran, all the enriched material, and the dismantling of Iran’s enrichment capabilities,” Netanyahu said in a video statement.

The premier said his country was “prepared for all scenarios” in dealing with Iran.

“We are... prepared for all scenarios, and those are the instructions I have given to the army and our security services,” Netanyahu said.

Published in Dawn, May 7th, 2026