The United States and Iran are considering extending the ceasefire that ends on Tuesday (22) for another two weeks to give more time to negotiate a peace agreement, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Mediators between the conflicting sides try to organize technical talks to resolve the most controversial issues, said the person, who asked not to be identified discussing sensitive topics. Among them are the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the nuclear enrichment of Iran.
If successful, these talks could pave the way for the next round of talks between senior officials from the two countries, the source said.
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There is still no guarantee that the ceasefire will be extended, and the US has not yet agreed to it, said a US official familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity because the discussions are private.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Neither Iran nor the US want a return to fighting, another person familiar with the talks said.
US President Donald Trump downplayed the possibility of a resumption of war on Tuesday, telling Fox Business that the nearly seven-week conflict is “close to an end.”
The conflict, started by the US and Israel on February 28 with the bombing of Iran, caused great damage to the Islamic Republic’s military power and infrastructure. Iranian counterattacks wreaked havoc across the Middle East and, with Tehran practically closing the vital Strait of Hormuz, caused energy prices to soar, generating a political cost for Trump.
Still, the main points of friction between the US and Iran are far from easy to resolve. Iran has maintained for years that it has the right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes, while Trump has said this should be prohibited to prevent the country from ever building a nuclear weapon. The US and Israel also say Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium must be handed over or destroyed.
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Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told journalists on Wednesday that the country’s peaceful use of nuclear energy “cannot be revoked,” although the level and type of uranium enrichment are “negotiable.”
It is unclear whether Israel favors an extension of the truce with Iran, although the country has previously said it would follow Washington’s lead. The Israeli government’s assessment is that the US and Iran will extend the two-week ceasefire to continue negotiating, said a Jewish state official.
Israel’s security cabinet meets on Wednesday night to discuss a possible ceasefire in Lebanon, where Israel is waging a parallel war against Iran-backed Hezbollah, Israeli broadcasting network Kan reported.
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The Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas exports normally pass, remains effectively closed. On Monday, the US began blocking ships leaving or entering Iranian ports, a measure criticized by Iran, which indicated that this could constitute a violation of the ceasefire, signed on April 7. The truce did not include the conflict in Lebanon.
US Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf met on Saturday night in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad as part of efforts to end the conflict. The meeting ended without agreement.
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