Mediator Pakistan says US, Iran expected to sign initial deal within 24 hours

The United States and Iran have agreed on a framework for a peace deal after more than three months of war and are expected to sign the initial deal in the next 24 hours, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Saturday.

Sharif, whose country has been mediating in the war, said Pakistan was preparing for an electronic signing that would be followed by technical-level talks next week.

The US and Iran had signalled on Friday that an agreement to end their war was close, with a senior US administration official saying both sides had agreed on a text and that Washington expected to sign an initial deal in coming days.

"We are closer to a peace deal than ever before. With finalisation likely expected in the next 24 hours, Pakistan is preparing for the electronic signing of the peace deal immediately after, followed by technical level talks next week," Sharif wrote on X.

"We are confident that this historic peace deal will form a strong foundation for lasting peace."

The war began with joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. Iran then fired on US military targets in the Gulf and Hezbollah in Lebanon fired at Israel, triggering a renewal of conflict between Israel and the Iran-aligned group.

The war has killed thousands of people, mostly in Iran and Lebanon, and sent global energy prices sharply higher.

WHAT IS IN THE DEAL?

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Friday that while changes in the deal were still possible, the tentative agreement showed his country had emerged stronger from the conflict.

"Iran is the winner of the war with the US," he said on state television on Friday.

Hours after those remarks, US forces shot down multiple Iranian one-way attack drones heading toward the Strait of Hormuz, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the drones had posed a threat to commercial traffic. US Central Command later confirmed the action and said the waterway was open.

The proposed memorandum of understanding calls for reopening the strait and lifting the US naval blockade on Iranian ports, sources on all sides of the talks said. Negotiations over Iran's nuclear program - US President Donald Trump's stated rationale for starting the war - would take place afterwards.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters on Friday that the deal met Trump's core objectives and put negotiations "in a very, very good place".

Draft terms described to Reuters by multiple sources indicate the US would begin releasing billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets and waive sanctions on its oil exports, in return for Iran opening the strait.

Iran's nuclear program would be addressed during a 60-day period of talks. The US official said the agreement would ultimately lead to the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program, with its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to be destroyed and removed.

But Araqchi said that Iran, which sources said has not accepted the dismantling of its nuclear program, wanted to retain the uranium in diluted form.

The proposals also include discussion of possible war reparations for Tehran and dropping longstanding US demands for limits on Iran's missile program, the sources said. The US official disputed that account.