Trump Says ‘Final Determination’ on Iran Truce Is Coming

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(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump said Friday he’s making a “final determination” on a preliminary deal to extend a ceasefire with Iran although mixed messages from both sides over when an agreement might be struck continued to confuse the outlook for a breakthrough. 

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“I will be meeting now, in the Situation Room, to make a final determination,” Trump said in a social media post. He reiterated previous statements that Iran “will never have a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb” and that the Strait of Hormuz must be open and any mines destroyed or removed. 

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It wasn’t clear who Trump was meeting with to make the determination. After his post, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency repeated previous statements that no final understanding has been reached between the two sides, adding that no talks about Tehran’s nuclear program were even taking place. 

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The dueling statements continued uncertainty over the status of an agreement that would extend the current truce by 60 days, during which Iran and the US would discuss the future of Tehran’s nuclear program, a person with knowledge of the matter said. 

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The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the negotiations are private, confirmed an earlier report from Axios. Both countries have previously hailed progress, with Trump repeatedly indicating the US was close to securing an agreement — only for the standoff to drag on.

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Hopes that a ceasefire deal could pave the way for an end to the Iran conflict helped drive stocks toward a historic streak of weekly gains. 

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Beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear stockpile, a key issue for markets will be the status and control of the Hormuz strait if a deal is struck. Oil traders have been fixated on ships’ attempts to pass through the strait since its closure triggered the biggest energy-supply disruption in history and sent prices for vital fuels soaring. Trump has said the strait must reopen with unrestricted access, while Iran has indicated it is seeking some form of permanent influence over the waterway. 

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Underscoring that tensions remain, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament and a key figure in Iran’s wartime leadership, said earlier that “we have no trust in guarantees or words, the only criterion is action; no action will be taken before the other side acts.” 

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“The winner of any agreement is the one who is better prepared for war the day after,” Ghalibaf said in a post on X, without elaborating. 

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Vice President JD Vance told reporters Thursday that the US and Iran are “going back and forth on a couple of language points,” including over issues relating to Tehran’s nuclear capabilities. Iran appears to be negotiating in good faith and progress is being made, he added.

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Tasnim, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, earlier added that reports in the Western media about the contents of the draft agreement were inaccurate, without being specific. 

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent declined on Thursday to confirm an interim deal had been reached, saying only that negotiations continued. He reiterated Trump’s three “red lines” — reopening the Strait of Hormuz, Iran surrendering highly enriched uranium and ending its nuclear program — remain in place.