U.S. President Donald Trump said he is considering a final agreement with Iran that would require Tehran to permanently forgo nuclear weapons, remove any remaining mines from the Strait of Hormuz and cooperate with international efforts to eliminate enriched nuclear material, according to a statement released Friday.
Trump said the proposed framework would guarantee that Iran "will never have a nuclear weapon or bomb" and ensure the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to unrestricted commercial shipping in both directions.
The U.S. president also claimed that any remaining naval mines in the strategic waterway would be removed or detonated by Iran, adding that vessels affected by what he described as an "unprecedented naval blockade" could begin returning to normal operations once restrictions are lifted.
Trump further said enriched nuclear material stored deep underground in Iran would be recovered and destroyed in coordination with Iranian authorities and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). He claimed the United States and China possess the technical capability required to carry out such an operation.
"No money will be exchanged, until further notice," Trump said, adding that several additional issues had also been addressed as part of the discussions.
Trump said he would meet with advisers in the White House Situation Room to make a final determination on the proposed arrangement.
Meanwhile, Iran's top diplomat Abbas Araghchi told his Omani counterpart that reaching a deal with the United States to end the Middle East war depended on Washington dropping its "excessive demands," Tehran's foreign ministry said Friday.
"The Iranian minister of foreign affairs... indicated that arriving at a final agreement depended on ending the American party's attitude based on excessive demands and shifting and contradictory positions," the ministry said in a summary of a call between the ministers.
