U.S. President Donald Trump said that, as Iran agreed to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to end the war, he is canceling a third airstrike, adding that a signing ceremony for the MOU with Iran could be held this weekend. Iran, by contrast, revealed a difference in tone, saying that “approval is highly likely” while also stating that “no final decision has been made yet.”

At a proclamation signing ceremony at the White House on the 11th (local time), President Trump said, “We just made an excellent deal with Iran,” and added, “Over the next few days, we will go through the process of finalizing the documents.” He said, “A signing ceremony may be held in Europe over the weekend,” adding, “I will not be able to attend, but Vice President J. D. Vance will go.” He emphasized, “Upon signing, the Strait of Hormuz will be officially opened.”

Earlier, the president had stated on social media that “tonight we will strike Iran very powerfully,” and foreshadowed that “we will seize Kharg Island and other oil-related facilities and, as in Venezuela, completely take control of the Iranian oil and gas market.”

However, just five hours later, the situation reversed dramatically. Trump posted again on social media, saying, “Because the MOU has been reported to and approved by the highest levels of the Iranian leadership, I am canceling the third Iranian airstrike scheduled for tonight.” He also wrote, “All relevant parties, including Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Pakistan, have agreed to the details of the MOU.”

Positive signals also came from the Iranian side. Fars News Agency, which is close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said that “no wording of the MOU draft has yet been approved,” while adding that “there is a high likelihood that approval will be granted.”

Still, it remains unclear what the final contents of the MOU under discussion will include. Fars argued, “The United States is packaging this as if we stepped back because we could not withstand their bombing, but it is the United States that withdrew the additional clauses previously demanded and accepted the original proposal that Iran had put forward.”

According to what had previously been known, the MOU deferred all sensitive Iranian nuclear issues to be discussed during a 60-day truce to follow. However, after these details became public and criticism grew in the United States that this effectively amounted to capitulating to Iran, President Trump moved to renegotiate by adding several demands. Iran asserts that President Trump ultimately abandoned his intention to change the terms.

However, at the White House that day, President Trump repeated his earlier assertion that “most importantly, we have agreed that Iran will never possess nuclear weapons,” insisting that “this is a very big achievement.”

By contrast, Esmail Baghaei, spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told the state-run IRNA news agency that “a large portion of the negotiating text has been settled, but the United States has repeatedly shifted its position throughout the process,” while emphasizing that there would be no compromise on its ‘red lines’ (non-negotiable demands).

If President Trump makes major concessions on the nuclear issue or recognizes, in any form, Iranian control over Hormuz, he is expected to face fierce criticism from hardliners within the Republican Party as well as from Democrats, who would ask why he started this war in the first place. The Iranian government, likewise, could face a strong backlash from hardliners at home if it signs an MOU that makes major concessions on its stockpile of highly enriched uranium or on enrichment rights.

This has been one reason why, although President Trump has said multiple times in the past that ‘a deal is imminent,’ talks have repeatedly collapsed at the last minute.

However, the U.S. online outlet Axios, citing three sources familiar with the negotiations, reported that differences have narrowed to a level acceptable to both the United States and Iran on the core issues of releasing frozen Iranian assets, the nuclear program, and the full opening of Hormuz. The outlet said that Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and a Qatari envoy from the mediating country continued talks late into the previous night to narrow the gaps.