Relief, hope as US, Iran reach deal to end war

TEHRAN

Residents swim and play in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz while cargo ships and commercial vessels lie anchored in the distance off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Wednesday, June 10, 2026.(Razieh Poudat/ISNA via AP)

The United States and Iran announced a deal to end the Middle East war on all fronts and reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz, sparking relief on June 15 after months of deadly violence and global economic chaos.

The U.S. and mediator Pakistan said the agreement was to be signed on June 19 in Switzerland, with Saudi Arabia and other regional powers hailing the deal while ordinary Iranians voiced hope it could restore calm.

Few details were made public, but U.S. President Donald Trump said Hormuz, a key conduit for global oil supplies that Iran has blockaded since the start of the war, would reopen.

“The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete,” Trump said. “Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!”

Soon afterwards, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said in televised comments that the deal put an “immediate end” to the war and that they would hold talks within two months to seek a “final agreement.”

Iran’s military hailed the agreement as a victory, claiming that it had “humiliated” the U.S. and Israel

The deal follows weeks of fraught negotiations and periodic threats of fresh hostilities, but its details remain unclear.

Iran’s Mehr news agency reported that the U.S. would release $12 billion in frozen assets to Iran before the start of negotiations.

It quoted a 14-point “memorandum of understanding” between the two nations, which it said stipulated “the release of 24 billion dollars in frozen Iranian assets during the 60-day negotiation period” that begins after the MoU is signed.

The Trump administration didn’t immediately comment on the details, which may prove contentious as the U.S. presses its effort to end Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and deal with its stockpile of highly enriched
uranium, said to have been buried by U.S. strikes last year.

In an interview with the New York Times, Trump said the U.S. was still negotiating whether Iran would suspend its enrichment for 20 years.

He hinted that he might settle for a 15-year suspension, but said he did not want to negotiate via the press.

The announcement of the deal sparked relief in the region and beyond, with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calling it a “critical step” toward resolving the war.

The United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy said they were prepared to lift sanctions imposed on Iran and will work “with the U.S., Iran and regional partners to seize this moment, maintain momentum and achieve a long-term diplomatic settlement.”

“What we’re going to be able to do is drive down the cost of energy, not just now but for the long term, and create a real engine of prosperity in the Middle East,” U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News.

He said that he planned to attend the signing of the deal, which was expected to take place in Geneva, and that it was possible Trump himself could also go.