US and Iranian presidents sign deal aimed at ending war

2026-06-18 08:05:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The presidents of the US and Iran have signed an initial peace agreement aimed at ending the war, allowing it to take effect immediately.

The deal includes the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a $300 billion (£224 billion) plan to "rebuild" Iran and the lifting of "all types of sanctions" on Iran by the US.

But the issue of Iran's nuclear program, the main reason stated by the US for the conflict, must still be negotiated during an extendable 60-day period.

US President Donald Trump, who signed the deal in France during the G7 summit, defended the proposal, saying it would avoid an "economic catastrophe." However, he warned that the US would "bomb the hell out of" Iran if a final deal was not reached.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also signed the document on Wednesday, Tehran confirmed.

Iran's parliament speaker and chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, told state media that his distrust of the US remains and that "Iran's finger is on the trigger."

"If the enemy does not understand the language of logic, we will enter again with the language of power," he told state broadcaster Fars.

The US and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior military officials on the first day.

But since then, the conflict has escalated, driving up energy prices and renewing inflationary pressures, while Iran imposed a de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key trade waterway through which about 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) typically passes.

Trump told reporters in France, at the lakeside resort of Evian-les-Bains, where the G7 summit was held, that the plan would avoid a "global depression."

"I didn't want to see economic disaster," Trump told reporters. "If you had continued this, this could have happened."

"The only thing I know is that every time we talked about the possibility of peace, the stock market went up like a rocket," he added.

"Every time we said something negative, like, guess what, we're not going to be able to agree, it would go down really badly."

The US and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior military officials on the first day.

Trump told reporters in France, at the lakeside resort of Evian-les-Bains, where the G7 summit was held, that the plan would avoid a "global depression."

"I didn't want to see economic disaster," Trump told reporters. "If you had continued this, this could have happened."

"The only thing I know is that every time we talked about the possibility of peace, the stock market went up like a rocket," he added.

"Every time we said something negative, like, guess what, we're not going to be able to agree, it would go down really badly."

In early Asian trading on Thursday, Brent crude oil was about 1% lower at $78.79 (£59.21) a barrel, but remained about $8 higher than before the conflict began.

Trump signed a printed copy of the initial agreement, called a memorandum of understanding, during a state dinner hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron at the Palace of Versailles.

The text states that the US and Iran will "commit to negotiating and reaching a final agreement within a maximum period of 60 days, with the possibility of extension by mutual consent."

The agreement states that "Iran reaffirms that it will not acquire or develop nuclear weapons," which was Trump's number one condition since the start of the war.

The memorandum also says that Iran's enriched uranium will be "blended" - meaning diluted - in-house, under the auspices of the IAEA, the UN nuclear watchdog.

Initially, the US had demanded that nuclear material be completely removed from the country.

As for the Strait of Hormuz, under the agreement, there will be no fees for ships passing through this critical waterway for 60 days.

But the memorandum leaves open the possibility of future charges. There had been none before the conflict.