U.S. Agrees to Peace Deal With Iran After Pakistan Mediation

OMG, plus he had the White House cage match today!

U.S. Agrees to Peace Deal With Iran After Pakistan Mediation

U.S. to lift blockade while Iran opens Strait of Hormuz, Trump says

By Josh Dawsey, Anat Peled and Benoit Faucon, WSJ

Updated June 14, 2026

Iran and the U.S. announced a peace deal on Sunday, ending nearly four months of conflict that caused global political and economic turmoil.

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WASHINGTON—Iran and the U.S. have agreed on a peace deal, the two nations announced Sunday, a major breakthrough after nearly four months of fighting that created global political and economic turmoil.

President Trump, in an interview earlier Sunday with The Wall Street Journal, said this deal would either be signed electronically by himself or Vice President JD Vance on Sunday. Pakistani negotiators said a formal signing would come later this week. Trump’s interview with the Journal came just hours before he was set to attend a large-scale Ultimate Fighting Championship fight on the White House’s lawn.

“Following intensive talks, we are pleased to announce that the Peace Deal between the United States of America and Islamic Republic of Iran has been REACHED,” said Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister of lead mediator Pakistan. “Both sides have declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.”

The official signing ceremony will be on Friday in Switzerland, Sharif said on his X social-media account.

Trump, in a 5:29 p.m. social-media post, wrote that the “Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete. Congratulations to all! I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade. Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!”

The government in Tehran later confirmed the deal had been struck. “Agreement reached,” Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a post on his X account. “Greetings to Diplomacy General,” he said, under a picture of Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi.

Some have described the agreement as a “memorandum of understanding” that would set up further talks, but Trump said Sunday that this would be a major step toward ending the nearly four-month conflict.

The pact includes commitments to end the conflict between the U.S. and Iran. The Islamic Republic is set to reopen the Strait of Hormuz while the U.S. is expected to end its blockade of Iran ports.

The agreement also paves the way for a 60-day period of negotiations over Tehran’s controversial nuclear program, which the U.S. suspects could be used to develop a nuclear weapon. In exchange for curbs on the program, Iran expects access to billions of dollars of cash blocked abroad and an end to sanctions that have stifled its economy.

The president has repeatedly expressed optimism about a deal with the Iranians, even suggesting for more than a month that it was all but clinched. But often these talks have fallen apart at the last minute without signoff from the Iranians. Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with the war as it has driven up gasoline prices and splintered some of his supporters.

Trump said he wasn’t as concerned about changing Iran’s regime as some of his critics.

“As far as regime change, I never cared about regime change. This is the third group we’ve dealt with, and this is the most rational group yet,” Trump said.

The interview came hours after Trump expressed frustration with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu for an exchange of fire between Israel and Hezbollah, which appeared to almost scuttle the sensitive talks. The U.S. and Israel launched attacks against Iran on Feb. 28, but relations between the White House and Israel have been strained since then over conflicting objectives.

“Bibi shouldn’t have done that,” Trump said on Sunday’s strikes inside Lebanon. “I didn’t like it at all. They fired a couple small missiles, and missed their mark by a lot.”

“They have to fire back, then he’ll fire back, then the whole thing never stops in the Middle East,” he said.

But Trump claimed Netanyahu was supportive of the deal. “Bibi is OK with it,” he said. “Why is it good for Bibi? Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon under any circumstance.”

Netanyahu has expressed concerns about the terms of a deal.

Sunday marked Trump’s 80th birthday, and at one point he stopped the interview to praise the music of Luciano Pavarotti. He also touted that the UFC event on the South Lawn was an extremely hot ticket, expressing his excitement for the evening’s festivities.

Earlier Sunday, Trump called Israel’s strike on Beirut disproportionate and ill-timed just as he was about to reach a deal with Tehran to end the war.

Police officers and emergency personnel work at the site of a strike in Beirut.

Police and emergency personnel working Sunday at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut’s suburbs. Zohra Bensemra/Reuters

“This morning’s attack on Beirut should not have happened, particularly on a special day when we are so close to a Peace Deal with Iran,” Trump said in a post on social media. “Israel has the right to defend itself against threats, but the attack it was responding to was very small and meaningless, nobody was hurt, injured, or killed, and should not disrupt this important process. We are very close to a Deal that will bring peace to the region, including to Lebanon, and all sides should stand down.”

The Israeli military attacked what it said was a Hezbollah command center in the suburbs of Beirut on Sunday after Hezbollah fired drones at Israeli territory. No injuries were reported as a result of the drone attacks. Three people were killed and 15 others were injured in the Beirut strike, according to Lebanese state media.

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah militants, backed by Iran, has become a persistent hurdle to ending the Iran war. Similar Israeli strikes have led to tense calls between Trump and Netanyahu in recent weeks.

In response to the Israeli strike, Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf threatened to pull out of negotiations. The strike “once again showed that America either has no will to fulfill its obligations or the ability to do so,” he said. “If you do not have the will and ability to fulfill your commitments, it is not possible to talk about continuing the path.”

Senior Iranian officials warned Tehran would retaliate against Israel.

“‎The response of the warriors of Islam is forthcoming,” said ‎Mohammad Zolghadr, ‎secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, the body in charge of the country’s military and security matters. “‎Lebanon is our lifeblood, and any violation of the red lines of the Islamic Republic will not be tolerated,” he said on the council’s X account.

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it was preparing for strikes aimed at Israel.

“Israel won’t tolerate attacks on its territory,” Netanyahu said on Sunday. Israel has said it would respond to any Hezbollah attacks on its territory with strikes on Beirut.

A delegation from Qatar, one of the mediating countries, traveled to Tehran on Sunday in the hope of completing the pact, according to a Middle Eastern official and the Fars news agency, which is affiliated with Iran’s security services.

Araghchi, Iran’s top diplomat, faced street protests and public criticism on Saturday by hard-liners who accused him of giving too many concessions to the U.S.

Netanyahu opposes a deal with Iran and has pushed for a return to fighting, according to people familiar with the matter. Netanyahu’s opponents and allies have criticized him for what they have described as a weak deal with Iran and over the perception that the U.S. is putting limitations on how much force Israel can use in Lebanon. Before the Israeli strikes on Sunday, Netanyahu’s finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, had called on the leader to strike in Beirut.