Trump, Iran Reach Last-Minute Agreement On Two-Week Cease-Fire

This article was originally published in Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). Read the original article.

By Alex Raufoglu

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump and Iran have agreed to a two-week Pakistani-brokered cease-fire, pulling back from the brink to allow the two sides time to negotiate a peace deal.

Trump, who early on April 7 wrote that "a whole civilization will die tonight" if Iran fails to reach a deal, said in a social media post that he had received a 10 point proposal from Tehran and he believes "it is a workable basis on which to negotiate."

See Also: Americans Spent $8.4 Billion More on Gas in the First Month of Trump’s Iran War: Report

The Tasnim news agency, which is close to the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), confirmed a cease-fire has been "established" between the two sides "with specific conditions."

"...wherein they requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran, and subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks," Trump wrote.

Trump gave no details of the Iranian proposal, but added that the agreement hinges on Tehran allowing for the free passage of ships in the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil and gas shipping lane.

Analysts pointed to that condition -- some 20 percent of the world's oil and gas pass through the waterway -- as being the key to the deal, adding that the stability of the cease-fire rests on Tehran.

"Now all eyes are on Iran as the president has made the cease-fire contingent upon Iran opening the strait," Alex Plitsas, a nonresident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council and a former Pentagon official, told RFE/RL.

It was not clear if Israel had also agreed to the plan.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi confirmed in a post on X that if the attacks against Iran are halted, Iran's armed forces "will cease" their retaliatory strikes, which have been aimed at targets throughout the Middle East.

"For a period of two weeks, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran's Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations."

Trump's post followed his warnings that the United States would target Iran's power plants and bridges.

See Also: Rejecting Temporary Ceasefire Deal, Iran Demands Total End of US-Israeli Hostilities

It also came just hours after US and Israeli air strikes hit multiple locations across Iran, including infrastructure and the strategic Kharg Island.

Senior Trump administration officials called the deal "a win," while Jason Brodsky, policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran, characterized the agreement as "a tactical pause -- a delay" by the United States to see if Iran will hold to the deal.

"I think President Trump retains the option of escalating. The attack plans have been prepared. That credible military threat remains," he told RFE/RL, adding that both nations remain in a position to strike.

"The Iranians have the ability to threaten the Strait of Hormuz. So both can revert to previous postures if this deal fails to hold."

The last-minute move came amid global concerns over Trump's remarks on wiping out Iranian civilization, with Pope Leo, an American, suggesting it was "truly unacceptable" and others warning against attacks on civilian infrastructure.

There had been few signs that the sides were ready for compromise in the war, which began with US and Israeli air strikes on Iran on February 28, and little overlap between proposals put forth by Washington and Tehran.

“The ceasefire, should it hold, could serve as a more general off ramp to future hostilities. In this sense, escalation -- even the threat of it -- may have been necessary to precipitate the current de-escalation,” Cale Brown, former State Department Deputy Spokesperson during Trump’s first administration and chair of Polaris National Security, told RFE/RL.

US Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said she welcomed a temporary cease-fire to stop the fighting with Iran, though concerns remain over what the war has achieved, citing a sharp increase in gas prices, the "enormous disruption" to the global economy, and the deaths of 13 US service members.

“Diplomacy is the only way forward. There must now be an intensive diplomatic effort, alongside our allies, to conclude this conflict and ensure Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon,” the senator from New Hampshire said in a statement late on April 7 after the cease-fire deal was announced.

Copyright (c)2025 RFE/RL, Inc. Used with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 

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