A key step towards the solution to the conflict that has unleashed terror in the Middle East since the end of February could be found in a one-page, 14-point memorandum, with which Washington seeks to seduce Iran to reach an agreement, according to four sources cited by the American media 'Axios'. The unblocking of the Strait of Hormuz, the Iranian nuclear moratorium and the unlocking of million-dollar funds to Tehran are essential topics in the document. However, from Tehran, the response seems ambiguous: an Iranian deputy pointed out that the plan is "more of an illusion than a reality," but the Foreign Ministry assured that the Islamic Republic is studying the offer.
First modification: 05/06/2026 - 19:05 Last modification: 05/06/2026 - 19:22
The White House has drafted a document to end the war in Iran that is being discussed by negotiators on both sides, as President Donald Trump scales down his force plans in the Strait of Hormuz in search of a deal with the Islamic Republic.
The memorandum of understanding, reported by the American portal 'Axios', seeks to get Iran to commit to a moratorium on uranium enrichment.
In return, the Trump Administration would offer to lift its sanctions and release billions of dollars in frozen Iranian funds around the world. Although there is no official estimate of the Islamic Republic's frozen assets globally, independent estimates say they may exceed $100 billion.
Read alsoPakistan, the unexpected mediator between Iran and the United States
A source close to the Pakistani government expressed confidence in reaching an agreement. "We will close it very soon. We are already close," he told Reuters.
Less optimistic was Iranian lawmaker Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesman for the parliament's powerful foreign policy and national security committee, who described the text published by 'Axios' as "an American wish list rather than a reality."
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Without alluding to the proposal, Trump suggested on social media that the war could end if "Iran accepts what was agreed." Otherwise, he warned, "the bombing will begin, and unfortunately it will be of a much greater intensity and level than before."
Read alsoU.S. proposal to end war is "more wishful thinking than reality": Iranian official
What are the details of the memo?
The signing of the memorandum of understanding would begin a 30-day period of negotiations on the details of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the Iranian nuclear moratorium and the removal of sanctions. The talks could be held in Islamabad or Geneva, according to two of the 'Axios' testimonies.
During that month after the pact, the end of the US naval blockade of Iranian ports is also expected, an official added to the digital media.
One of the most sensitive issues within the agreement is the moratorium on uranium enrichment that Iran must assume, a deadline that the United States has set at 20 years, while Tehran has given in, at most, to leaving it at five years, according to previous statements by two senior Iranian officials and a US official cited by 'The New York Times'.
The officials cited by 'Axios' spoke of a range of between 12 and 15 years in the recent memo and one of them even commented on a clause related to an extension of the veto in case of any violation of the pact.
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The text is being negotiated by Trump's envoys - led by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner - and several officials of the Islamic Republic, directly and through mediators, always according to the digital portal.
Some essential issues in previous talks do not appear in the current memorandum, such as limiting the Iranian missile program or ending Tehran's support for militias installed in the Middle East, a particularly sensitive issue for Israel, Washington's partner in conflict with Hezbollah.
Israel, which has previously pressured Trump to maintain a firm stance on its demands from Tehran, has not issued any official statement on the alleged diplomatic developments. A source cited by Reuters maintained that Benjamin Netanyahu's government was not aware of the possibility of a potential agreement.
Read alsoMore than 100 aircraft and 15,000 soldiers: this is “Project Freedom”, announced by Trump to “liberate” Hormuz
Steps towards de-escalation?
The sources interviewed by 'Axios' related Trump's decision to paralyze for a "brief period" the 'Project Freedom' operation, launched to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with satisfactory progress in the rapprochements with Tehran based on the 14-point document.
On the night of Tuesday, May 5, the American president suspended the so-called "Project Freedom" operation that he had just announced last Sunday, May 3, citing the possibility of reaching an agreement with Iran.
That operation was designed, according to Washington, to escort ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, a crossing that is experiencing a blockade in the midst of the fragile truce between Tehran and Washington. However, it was described by Tehran as a violation of the ceasefire.
Now, optimism over a possible agreement between the US and Iran has had a favorable impact on global oil prices, with Brent crude oil plummeting to $98 per barrel, falling around 11%.
Read alsoTrump pauses his operation to reopen the Strait of Hormuz while seeking an agreement with Iran
What is Iran's response?
From the Islamic Republic, the answer seems ambiguous.
Iranian MP Ebrahim Rezaei said the report on a memorandum of understanding is "more wishful thinking than reality."
"The Axios text is the wish list of the Americans until it comes true. The Americans will not obtain through a failed war what they did not achieve in direct negotiations. Iran has its finger on the trigger and is ready; if they do not surrender and grant the necessary concessions, or if they or their allies, their henchmen, try to act with malice, we will give them a severe and regrettable response," said Rezaei, in a message published on his social networks.
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For his part, the main Iranian negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, declared this Wednesday that Washington seeks Tehran's surrender by various means, including a naval blockade. "The enemy, in its new strategy, seeks, through a naval blockade, economic pressure and media manipulation, to destroy the cohesion of the country to force us to surrender," Ghalibaf said in a voice message published on his official Telegram channel.
The influential speaker of Iran's parliament offered no details on the prospects for a peace plan with the United States, as Tehran continues to analyze the elements of a US proposal.
However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Bagaei, quoted by the Iranian news agency ISNA, confirmed that the Persian Gulf country is reviewing a US proposal and would transmit its response soon through Pakistan, the main mediator and venue of the only peace talks between both sides.
Hours earlier, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard indicated that the Strait of Hormuz, the epicenter of the contained escalation between Washington and Tehran, could be reopened, but after the suspension of "Project Freedom" and on condition that the Trump Administration completes its threats.
Between the good omens of the conflict mediators, the pressure from the White House to sign an agreement and the secrecy of Tehran, the future of the war seems to hang on a page that circulates among the Iranian leadership. Meanwhile, a relative calm hovers on the battlefield under the omnipresent threat that "hell" will break loose, just as Donald Trump has promised.
Read also: The truce on the limit?: Hormuz, at the epicenter of a contained escalation between the US and Iran
With Reuters, AP and local media
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