U.S. and Iran Race to Finalize Framework Deal as Israel Warns It Leaves Core Threats Unresolved

After more than two months of negotiations and periodic exchanges of fire, President Donald Trump says a framework agreement with Iran is due to be signed on Sunday, though Tehran has not yet confirmed the timing. Pakistan, one of the mediators, said the signing will be digital, with both sides approving it online rather than in a face-to-face ceremony. The deal is expected to extend the ceasefire for 60 days, during which the sides would negotiate a final accord on Iran’s nuclear program and other issues.

The planned signing changed after an earlier idea for a more formal ceremony appeared to collide with security rules and Trump’s travel plans. CNN reported that the original plan involved Vice President JD Vance, possibly in Geneva, but the schedule was revised because the president and vice president do not leave the United States together and Trump is set to fly Monday to the G7 summit in France. Mediators reportedly feared that any delay could cause a last-minute collapse.

The framework is described as a short memorandum, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying it would be “shorter than two pages.” It would reportedly restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has threatened shipping since the war began, while the U.S. would lift its blockade on Iranian ports. In exchange, the sides would continue technical talks on a final nuclear deal. Trump says the arrangement must move quickly and warned on Truth Social that if it does not, the U.S. still has an “ultimate alternative.”

Major gaps remain over the nuclear and missile files. U.S. officials have said the framework begins a process of removing and destroying Iran’s enriched uranium, which the UN says totals 440 kilograms at 60 percent enrichment, plus 10.9 tons at lower levels. Iran is believed to have sealed much of that material in underground sites at Isfahan, Natanz and Fordo. There are also conflicting accounts over future enrichment rights, limits on ballistic missiles, and whether a ban would last 20 years or much less.

Another open question is money. Trump said the deal will not release Iranian funds immediately, despite reports that Iran wanted $24 billion upfront and has roughly $100 billion in frozen assets abroad. He also said any sanctions relief will be “performance-based.” In Israel, officials say the agreement is worrisome because it may not eliminate the nuclear or missile threat and could constrain Israeli action against Hezbollah. One senior Israeli source said, “We are not being heard,” while another told ynet, “Trump screwed us.”